“Traveller, there is no path, the path is made by walking.”
Like comfort food for the mind and soul, this passage served as a comforting reminder for me during many uncomfortable days and sleepless nights, just as it has for many others coloring outside the lines of a “normal” life path.
But on March 6th 2018, these words transformed from comforting passage into a life affirming beacon.
On that night, I heard one of the most successful musicians of all time admit, that for the last 50 years, he’d been making it all up.
There was no path, no predetermined series of steps for him to follow in order to arrive at his desired destination. There was no timeline, no schedule, no blueprint.
There was only a burning desire and time.
As a young man, he recognized the life ahead of him was blank page, ready to accept any story he wished to imprint upon it.
Admittedly, he had no clue how he would make it happen.
The obstacles were daunting, nearly insurmountable.
He remained undeterred, committed to himself and his dreams.
He practiced, showed up, worked his ass off, and overcame any obstacle thrown his way for a decade before finally getting his shot – all the while, flying blind and making it up as he went.
Bruce Springsteen is far from the only one with a story like this.
Pick your person – The Rock, Oprah, Richard Branson – not one has followed a predetermined path printed in a book sitting on a Guidance Counselor’s bookshelf.
If they had to make it up as they went along, why do we think it should or will be any different for each of us.
HINT: it won’t. Grab your hiking boots and machete and start walking traveller. The same blank page lies in front of each of us, just daring us to write on it.
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