“If you listen and pay attention, I bet you can find a deeper journey you are meant to be on, too.” – Paul Millerd

Pathless Path

I looked at the pile of bailing twine in front of me.  The truth is that I had been looking at that heap of twine, in its not very lonely spot, in the hay barn for a long time.  After all, I, along with a couple of others, are the ones who had been putting that twine, strand by strand, into its large holding-garbage-can for months on end.  And, I didn’t want to go to the hard work of tackling and moving that gargantuan, Godzilla looking, mess. This particular viewing was different though.  It allowed me to realize that this seemingly, significant pile of strands was one component of a continual disquieting.

My friend Paul Millerd had talked with me about this kind of disquieting not long ago. He said, “If you listen and pay attention, I bet you can find a deeper journey you are meant to be on.”

He went on to describe like intermixed strands of bewilderment by admitting that, generally, no one knows what comes next in their life and that he doesn’t have an idea, all the answers, in his own life. But, he’s spent enough time on life’s uncertain journey to know that when it comes to building a life around what you love, there are no short cuts, roadmaps, or instructions. The best we can do is share our stories. Stories that will help others untangle their own strands and figure out the “real work” of their lives: finding things to work on that matter.

At one point or another I’m sure you’ve faced your own trash can filled with innumerable strands. You’ve felt overwhelmed. Well, if you're like the rest of humanity anyway! Such disquieting feelings tend to come to the surface when we feel as if we’re facing unknown unknowns, a pathless path.  A path we just don’t know how to walk; ideas and paths for which there is no map. 

Paul says that in an effort to untangle his own way he embraced a principle he calls “design for liking work.”  “The reality is that most people want to be useful, and that means some form of work in people’s lives. With patience and a willingness to feel lost and take it slow, over the last few years, I started to find a better relationship with work. Inspired by ideas from internet writers, poets, books on spirituality and religion, my own writing, self-experiments, and those conversations with internet friends from around the world, I’ve been able to build a life I am excited to keep living. While it took me more than five years to come close to matching my previous income—a reality that holds many people back from leaving their jobs—I can say without a doubt, it might be harder on this current path, but it’s worth it.”

“It might be harder in a way.  But, it might, just as well be easier!”  I said to myself as I took hold of two strands of bailing twine and quickly rolled them together into a hand-sized circle before easily slipping them into the pocket of my jeans.  Untangling just one or two strands, from that huge pile every day, was easy and comforting as I watched the once seemingly unconquerable pile shrink over time.  After a few weeks all of the strands had been untangled; the mess was gone and my newly created path had become well-worn.

When you find yourself on a pathless path, be a little patient.  Be willing to feel a little lost.  Take it slow, until what was once a pathless path becomes the well-worn path of your own choosing.