Pathwalking 34
What makes a person deviate from the path they are walking? How does a person who has been walking a very good life path wreck that path to the point where the path no longer exists and no other path can be started?
I was asked these questions in response to a previous post, and believe that it bears its own entry in the Pathwalking series, and a more in-depth analysis.
What makes a person deviate from the path they are walking? The answer is varied, and can be any one or combination of these – outside influences like family, friends and business associates; a loss of faith in the path they have chosen; a change of heart, a feeling that the choice made thus far is incorrect; perhaps gaining knowledge that shows this particular path they are on simply does not work for them anymore; a change of goals, possibly encountered along the journey; a terrible loss, a marriage, a birth…some other similar life changing event.
As previously mentioned, the path is seldom singular, and not without twists and turns. A deviation is bound to happen, as inevitably as change will occur. No way to avoid it, it’s just a question of how you react to it, and regain control of the path.
Some deviations are harder to deal with than others. Some are not desired, and as such having to deal with them adds an unwanted complexity to the process.
How does a person who has been walking a very good life path wreck that path to the point where the path no longer exists and no other path can be started? I think this question, though, is more challenging to address. While I have never experienced this, I can imagine there are all kinds of ways.
Perhaps you make a mistake along the way – something that seems insignificant, but changes how you live, what you are capable of doing; you learn that you’ve been wrong about a core belief, like your religion or your spiritual path or similar; you lose faith and heart and, probably most seriously of all, hope. When all hope is gone, sight of the path can be totally lost.
Pathwalking requires faith, requires heart, requires hope. Believing in what you are choosing, believing in a world of disbelievers and skeptics in something greater than the norm is a bold, hard step to take. Losing that along the way, I would suppose, could be terrifically devastating.
I believe that you can never reach a point where the path is utterly gone, and cannot be restarted. But then, that’s a part of who I am as a person, and my own world view. I have had crisis of faith and heart along the way, but have never lost all hope, all faith, to the point where ALL paths were gone. They were obscured, almost impossible to fathom…but not gone entirely.
I would presume that is the point where a person might become suicidal or homicidal. I would guess that if it seems that you have nothing – no hope, no faith, no love – and lose the desire and passion to live, let alone choose and walk a path, you might reach such a point.
Perhaps it is exactly that which drives people to suicides and senseless murders and such. I can only imagine that for a good person, doing what they can to live their life, a loss of hope, faith and heart could be so devastating, it drives them to a dark, terrible, destructive place. It’s really hard to do more than speculate, as I have never reached a similar point. But since Pathwalking is about pursuing dreams and goals and choices, which requires faith and hope, it seems logical.
I cannot imagine losing all paths completely. What horror must you endure to lose your hope, faith, and heart, and lose sight of any path at all? I’ve know people who have been suicidal for a time, which I have never experienced myself; but to go from a normal existence to perpetrating a horrible crime like the shootings in Aurora or an act of terrorism is impossible to fathom. What destroys a person so completely that they choose such an awful thing? I hope that most of us never ever experience this.
As much as Pathwalking is a solo journey, none of us on it are truly alone. But that can be VERY hard to remember sometimes. I wish that we lived in a world more spiritually connected, akin to how we are technologically connected, to better understand these things, and DO something about them, even. If more people saw, felt, and understood the connections between us all, the world would be a happier, healthier, more abundant and wondrous place for ALL.
And that is a part of why I write these every week, share my own journey as I walk this path I choose for my life. Because, when all is said and done, we are all connected spiritually, probably better than the technology of our daily lives connects us. I believe my choosing to walk my own path, while MY OWN, is not an utterly unique act. Others make the same choice, and I think sharing my experiences may be helpful.
I have a request. Pay attention to the people around you. Note how they are, how they are feeling, and show them your appreciation and love. That is how each of us can do our small part to help people to NEVER fall to such a terrible, hopeless, pathless place.
This is the thirty-fourth entry in my series. These weekly posts are specifically about walking along the path of life, and my desire to make a difference in this world along the way. Thank you for joining me.
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