Embracing the inevitable path

n° 23 A pep talk for dealing with difficulty and desire

Before diving into today’s essay, there is an immediate cause in need of your support. In response to the devastating wildfires on Maui, Regenerative Education Centers, a Hawaii 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, is setting up an off-grid shelter and drop-off site in Olowalu to support displaced residents. Donate here.

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Hello, Studiomates,

I consider myself to be an empathetic and understanding person, but I notice myself getting increasingly impatient. Especially when someone tells me that something that I want is not going to be easy, or that it’s going to be hard to get.

I didn’t ask how hard it would be.

I want to know if and when I am going to have it, and how.

We all dream and set our sights on an experience we want to have:

… starting a business …

… a hopelessly romantic love…

… becoming a parent …

… finding relief from chronic pain…

… freedom of debt…

… buying a home…

… a move to a new country…

My dreams and desires stand on their own and they deserve space to breathe. To be cherished and pursued. To be quietly revered. To be held high in the mind’s eye. To be paid homage, every step of the way.

AND. The path to fulfilling the desire is not guaranteed to be smooth. I know that there are risks and tradeoffs, yet I march toward my destination anyway.

When it comes to working with my Desire, the prospect of how potentially difficult it may be to attain becomes entirely irrelevant. A moot point. Smoosh-ed.

Because, I know that in hindsight, the most difficult moments in life are the most rewarding. I look forward to the day that I emerge more expanded, with more understanding, and grounded in who I am in truth.