GO FORWARD ANYWAY

There's an East Indian parable about a man who is running through a jungle being chased by a lion; whenever he looks back to see if it is still there, the lion is always right there just about to get him. The story suggests our own state when we are constantly looking backwards to see if something we tried to free ourselves from is still there. At some point in our life, we realize that the way to freedom is to quit looking back. We look back to make sure we are really free. But freedom comes when we boldly step forward into the new without needing to make sure or to know in advance how things will work out for us. Freedom is going forward anyway, regardless of the past or the future. A friend of mine used to say that when you are being chased by a posse, pretend that you're leading a parade. Let's decide to go forward into our freedom.