photo credit: Heather Peters
The following tale of five men lost in the woods has appeared in many forms throughout the years. I did a search and cannot find anyone to whom it's attributed. I saw it again today on an Eckhart Tolle group chat and it felt perfect for this time of searching.
"Five men got lost in a vast forest. They tried to find their way out.
The first man said, “I will follow my intuition and go left.”
The second man said, “I will go right. I have a strong feeling about this.”
The third man said, “I think I will walk back the same path we came. This should be the safest option.”
The fourth man said: “I think we are on the right track already, so I will keep going straight. I am sure this forest will end and I will find a village or a farm to ask for directions.”
The fifth man said, “I don’t know what to do. I think I will climb up this tall tree and take a better look around before I make up my mind.”
So the fifth man did that. While he was climbing, the other four men scattered towards their own directions. The fifth man now could see from above what was the shortest way to a village. He thought that the others should not have chosen the paths they did. He was wrong, though.
Each man chose his own path and gained a different experience. The man who went left, found a long path but in the end, it led him to the town.
The man who went right, had to fight a pack of wolves, but this way he learned how to survive in the forest.
The man who went back, met another team of hikers and he made new friends.
The man who went straight, found a farm and was hosted by the family for a couple of days before leaving for the village.
Everyone was enriched in their own unique way by the journey.
~~~
Some reflections on this story...
What if there are no "right" or "wrong" decisions?
Could it be that every decision offers us new experiences, which in turn offers us innumerable further opportunities for growth?
It has taken every decision of our life to bring us to where we are right now. In the fullness of the present, are we really in the wrong place? Even if it feels so, can we be sure?
What if there are no mistakes? ..... Only opportunities?"
"Learning is joyful if it leads you along your natural path, and facilitates the development of what you have." -- A Course in Miracles - T-8.II
The first man said, “I will follow my intuition and go left.”
The second man said, “I will go right. I have a strong feeling about this.”
The third man said, “I think I will walk back the same path we came. This should be the safest option.”
The fourth man said: “I think we are on the right track already, so I will keep going straight. I am sure this forest will end and I will find a village or a farm to ask for directions.”
The fifth man said, “I don’t know what to do. I think I will climb up this tall tree and take a better look around before I make up my mind.”
So the fifth man did that. While he was climbing, the other four men scattered towards their own directions. The fifth man now could see from above what was the shortest way to a village. He thought that the others should not have chosen the paths they did. He was wrong, though.
Each man chose his own path and gained a different experience. The man who went left, found a long path but in the end, it led him to the town.
The man who went right, had to fight a pack of wolves, but this way he learned how to survive in the forest.
The man who went back, met another team of hikers and he made new friends.
The man who went straight, found a farm and was hosted by the family for a couple of days before leaving for the village.
Everyone was enriched in their own unique way by the journey.
~~~
Some reflections on this story...
What if there are no "right" or "wrong" decisions?
Could it be that every decision offers us new experiences, which in turn offers us innumerable further opportunities for growth?
It has taken every decision of our life to bring us to where we are right now. In the fullness of the present, are we really in the wrong place? Even if it feels so, can we be sure?
What if there are no mistakes? ..... Only opportunities?"
"Learning is joyful if it leads you along your natural path, and facilitates the development of what you have." -- A Course in Miracles - T-8.II
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