Unknown Pathways

The legions of crabs scurry across the sand back to their holes as I walk along the shore.

I marvel at how no matter how far they stray in search of food, they always find their way to their specific caves, in complete order, never attempting to usurp another’s abode.

Crabs know the ways of crabs.

The sockeye salmon fascinate me.

They leave from mountain streams and travel far into the ocean on a journey that takes them 6,000 miles before they return to spawn in the very stream they started from.

There are no markers or road signs in the ocean.

Fish know the way of fish.

Canadian geese soar from the Northern Territories to south of the border, turn around and fly home.

They land in the exact fields they left behind the previous year.

Birds know the ways of birds.

Then we have humans.

Despite compasses and global positioning systems, so many of us wander the planet without direction, one foot occasionally in front of the other, plodding along with no real destination other than surviving the week.

Our plan seldom extends past next weekend.

We make resolutions.

We drop them.

Too hard.

We buy day planners and palm pilots.

We jot notes to ourselves and appear so organized.

Organized for what?

When do we take the time to look at our lives, chart the course to date, examine whether we feel satisfied with the log book, make adjustments for the future, re-set the sails that need trimming and venture back out?

No.

Too many of us simply drift, caught in the wind of the day, whichever way it blows.

We wake up in familiar places yet without any real sense of how we arrived there.

We just did.

Job, family, health, social calendars, general challenges—so many influences tugging and pulling, seeking to distract us and keep us from ever paying attention to anything but the task at hand.

When do we simply stop?

When do we ask the tough question—do I know where I want to go and will my actions take me there?

Blessed with so many gifts, we fail to use them.

We straggle and meander like vagabonds.

Oh, some of us have houses and jobs and the appearance of stability.

We may even have a retirement strategy.

So.

What’s our purpose?

What do we choose to make important?

Neither crabs, nor fish, nor birds need a guidebook.

They already know their way.

What about you?

Have you drafted a map?

Do you use it?

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

A journey toward happiness and purpose requires a blueprint. 

Or you can throw the rudder away.

That’s A View From The Ridge…

Best-selling author, Ridgely Goldsborough has written 19 books to date, 5 on emotional intelligence and has developed a phenomenal program called CustomerConversionFormula.com that you can get absolutely free as a member of the Groove community.