Retreat, Freely
“Better to retreat a mile,
than gain an inch.”
- Lao Tzu
I
Life offers an opportunity:
Retreat forcibly: “push through” to burnout, lack of clarity, uncalm; or
Retreat freely: curate consumption, do less, do nothing.
II
Similarly, life offers an opportunity to learn through pain, or joy.
Learning through pain involves repeating what we have done. Living under someone else’s operating system. Learning through pain is predictable. Our future resembles our past. Outcomes repeat.
Learning through joy involves maturation, evolution, a transcendence. It is Divinely demanding. It asks us to do unfamiliar things, things we were unexposed to, untaught, even thought laughable. It invites us to pause, reflect, develop our awareness, and forgive ourselves. And, do so daily.
III
When we choose to retreat forcibly and learn through pain, we tempt life to shut doors, leaving us without choice but to surrender out of desperation. Life will teach the same lesson, again and again, until we learn it.
Alternatively, when we choose to retreat freely and practice learning through joy, we prepare for what may be next. We rise, inviting life to open doors that reveal the fullness of our being.
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