Mental 67

Humble Beginnings
“The depth of darkness to which you can descend and still live is an exact measure of the height to which you can aspire to reach.” Pliny the Elder

Foresight is often a double-edged sword. Without the benefit of it, many of the journeys we embark on would seem futile, and the pain, suffering, and struggle of present time would often seem insurmountable.

Looking forward to a greater good, a well-learned lesson or well completed task, or product of success is often what moves us through and past the murk.

The other edge of the sword says that since “it” never really gets easier, most forethought is simply self-deception, and is a game of trickery (albeit a necessary one) that we play with ourselves in order to make ANY progress at all in the toughest of climates or on the narrowest of paths.

Foresight in the form of reality-tempered hope seems the most prudent way of looking past the present. Existing in the current discomfort, making friends with the struggle… if the stars align the way you’d like, you will end up looking back and feeling the vast sense of accomplishment that comes with enduring, sustaining, and succeeding.

“The only way out is through.” Robert Frost

The first rung on the ladder…