Life is not an ever-growing collection of successes and failures. It's not a bag of decisions, opinions, mistakes, or mishaps, or a rucksack full of bricks that you're condemned to drag through the sludges of time.
Life is more like the stroke of a paintbrush, emptying itself of all that clings to it and refining its precision with the passage of time. It's the vessel that exists to hold water, effortlessly releasing its contents to the next destination.
It's important to remember that not every destination can be reached by a well-paved path: some destinations require taking flight. When it's time to fly you just can't fill a giant bag with everything in your life and expect that plane to soar.
If where you're going is important, decide what really matters and take responsibility for your freedom. Hold tight to everything and everyone that will support your voyage and let go of everything else. Embrace your essence and when there is doubt let love lighten your load: a life painted in love outweighs a voyage completed unprepared.
This is one of the best and most honest posts I’ve ever read. Thank you for the comment.
Thank you, Ramona.
Emancipating!
Have you ever seen the movie Into The Wild? There is a song, there, by Eddie Vedder that I revere, named “Society”.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRUGvArWXLk
Letting go is an idea that has not come easy for me. Rather than willingly, I was forced into letting go, when the war struck. With a backpack each, my family and I “let go” in an instant and ventured into a life we never dreamed we would have. Nineteen years later, I am still letting go. Be it a pendular swing into self-depriving rebellion, or be it something else, it is very hindering.
It is funny how some things that were seemingly important, you let go of them in a second. Yet, others, perhaps you never thought were essential in your life, grow to be like a limb of your own and you don’t wish to lose them.
Thanks for a good read, looking forward to seeing you.
Thanks, Mili! I watched Into The Wild for the first time the other night — lots of lessons in there. I especially loved the profound simplicity and truth in the line, “Happiness only real when shared.”
Letting go gives us room to embrace more and I’ve discovered that as I released ‘stuff’, my ability to feel full and abundant simultaneously increased. It’s counter-intuitive, but it’s real!
Looking forward to seeing you as well. 🙂
Delightful thoughts Raam. I liked the analogy you gave for life to Paintbrush. Simply awesome and inspiring article.
Thank you so much.
Thank you, Naveen. I can’t take credit for the paintbrush analogy, as it was my dad who gave that to me at a young age. The parallels between art and life are incredible and have always fascinated me! 🙂
Raam,
This was a very meaningfully touching post. Your last paragraph spoke to me the most and resonated deep within my heart and soul.
….take responsibility for your freedom
….let go of everything else
priceless!
Thank you, Evita.
Responsibility for our freedom and the ability to recognize what we can let go of are the gifts nature bestows upon us.
Wow. What I love about your work is that whatever is challenging me in life, is sometimes the very thing you address with your words and ideas.
This entire post speaks loudly to me; each sentence an affirmation of what I know to be true as I create. I was going to ask if you “believe” in mistakes, and here is the answer in your first paragraph. And, as I contemplate allowing love to move me to new places, your last paragraph reflects to me my own heart truth. Thank you for this reflection!
I’m so happy this spoke to you! The synchronicity of all our lives plays out in between the threads of our existence. 🙂
where do you come up with this stuff. your wording is perfect!! its so poetic too. beautifully written. i feel like this is what I did in coming to Lebanon. yet I am not so sure about this love aspect of life…i’m not sure of love itself. sometimes being unprepared turns out to be a great completed voyage though.. in the end.. 🙂
Thank you, Natalie. I don’t always “come up” with it… sometimes it comes to me!
In a world where we’re taught to ‘be prepared’ (a result of the promotion of individualism), it’s sometimes difficult to see that sometimes being unprepared is the only way to proceed. 🙂