The Path With No Markers
Natalie Goldberg begins her book, Thunder and Lightening, with a warning.
Know that you will eventually have to leave everything behind; the writing will demand it of you. Bareboned you are on the path with no markers, only the skulls of those who never made it back … Now that you have been warned, let me also say this: if you want to know what you’re made of, if you want to stand on death’s dark face and leave behind the weary yellow coat of yourself, then just now – I hear it – the heavy wooden doors of the cloister of no return creaking open. Please enter.
Do I really have to be this brave to commit to a life as a writer – this naked, this scary, this breathtakingly dramatic? Do I have to give up everything?
I mean let’s get real. Surely I can keep saying yes to those little contracts that pay the bills and still stand on death’s dark face. Can’t I spend a few measly hours on Facebook and Twitter every day whilst also finding time to enter those big doors of the cloister of no return?
Okay maybe not, but how about this? What if I leave everything behind except my favourite TV show, my latest brilliant web idea and my daily soy vanilla lattes? And I don’t like the sound of that weary yellow coat so I’d be willing to give that up. Can I still head down the path with no markers, sort of bareboned?
I didn’t think so.
Natalie might be talking about writing, but her warning could just as easily apply to any great life change. If you are going to make that big dream happen – the one you’ve been harvesting for years – then it might be time to embrace wholeheartedly the commitment, the focus, the trust, the pace and the attention your dream needs and deserves.
I’ve been moving in new ways for a while now – taking small steps towards writing, exercising, working and decluttering. I’ve been pacing myself for change, learning how to be more creative than reactive, more resilient than inconsistent. My steps are more surefooted and deliberate. I can see more clearly what it is I want. I’m ready to walk this path bareboned and leave everything behind.
No, I’m not talking about leaving my husband and moving to Bali to study yoga at a nudist colony. I’m talking about narrowing life down, committing to a more focused path, leaving everything behind that I need to and grabbing hold of my potential. Why?
- Because narrowing life down guides me more directly towards my dream.
- Because committing to a more focused path helps me do a few things very well.
- Because leaving everything behind that no longer jibes with my dream clears the path.
- Because grabbing hold of my potential is what this big journey is all about.
I’m still fleshing out the details, rolling them around in my hands and tossing them in the air, but I’m ready to walk the path towards a healthful, creative and simplified writer’s life. My novel, my blog, my health and my work will become interwoven – each informing the other, threads of the same creative and momentum-soaked fabric. Every day, I will trim the loose ends and take small, emphatic steps — writing, walking, exercising and simplifying. I will walk bareboned towards who I am meant to be and I won’t look back.
Come with me. What have you got to lose? Everything – including that weary yellow coat.
35 Responses to “The Path With No Markers”
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Oh – just today – I wrote this. A bit of a different variation..but so much the same intention: http://www.marciescudderphotography.com/home/2011/10/16/seeking-clarity.html
Love the intention, Marcie.
The step-by-step motion of forward progress can sometimes seem so slow. Thanks for encouraging me to see it otherwise.
Winsomebella, I think slow might truly be the only pace that gets you there.
If there was any speed other than slow, more people would be where they want to be.
It’s sort of a shame, really.
I guess the best we can do is stay consistent, be happy, and help others down their path to help fill the time in between.
Consistent, happy and help others – nice sentiment Rob.
I read this at 2pm after waking from a nightmare about a horrid Teaching Assistant making life hell. (would be funny but it feels so real) and it made me go Oh.
Oh.
Oh, I see. Today and tomorrow are just days to get through. After this money making session I can focus on what is necessary for me…… And it so is not a silly woman treating me- Me- like a child. Take the path with no markers and be brave.
Thank you. Just the advice I needed.
Perhaps I’ll see you out there? Just in case. (I am so not a brave person!)
AngelJem, I’ll look for you on your brave journey. I’m certain you are braver than you realize.
That is so emphatic so focused and solid and loving. It belongs on a board above my bed until I take it by the heart and beat my way from morass to clearing. I’ve never missed a thing I have cleared away.
Great post, great excerpt Thank you!
Howard, I never missed a thing I cleared away either. We simply get used to something and think we need it. Check out Leo Babauta’s post on things we think we need at http://mnmlist.com/creep/ for some more food for thought.
When I can reach that place of simplifying my life, I can become aware that with my trued focus it is a clear matter of giving up the things I do not want and keeping the things I do want. Love to all Joy
Joy, and the simplifying helps us to clear, to let go and to see what it is we truly want.
Great post Katie! I too have been slowly and deliberately taking steps forward towards being more authentic and true to myself… releasing things from my life. Sometimes it feels as though I am taking too long in this process but I have also come to realize that with each step forward, I am no longer the person I was but growing more into my potential. Each step creating change and bringing something new into my life.
Thank you for the reminder that it is ok to move forward at my own pace.
Peace & Blessings,
Tania
Tania, your pace is perfect for you. Sounds like you are right on track. I’m excited for you.
The trouble with committing to too much focus is you feel guilty about taking a moment to read a great little blog like this
Jess, I hope you keep coming back … guilt-free
I’ll try to keep things short so it only takes a moment.
Katie,
I feel like I’m trying to simplify and declutter in order to have more focus and time to write. Many of us seem to be trying to do the same thing in this busy world we live in. Now if only I could get my husband to not collect camera parts, and DVD’s etc., we’d have more room and less clutter.
Sonia, it’s tough to bring everyone along on the same journey. I struggle with that too but I’ll fairly strong-willed so I usually get my way.
Beautiful post! I’m taking small steps, too. Love your blog.
Rebecca, I’m happy for you. Thank you for the kind words.
I love Natalie Goldberg, she’d a great writer!
Larissa, Natalie is my guide at the moment – spiritual, writing, self discovery – her words help me so much.
same journey we are going through – every little step you are taking
courage my friend!!
noch, courage to you too my friend.
I think of two words when I read this – simplified focus. I, too, feel like I’m trying to narrow down my focus instead of going in many different directions. Asking myself why am I doing this? Is it because someone suggested it, or is it because it’s align with how I want to be spending my time/reach a goal/etc.?
And, I know that I can’t produce creativity without some solitude and quiet time. I can’t just force it to happen on a whim. As you’ve said before it needs to be romanced and nurtured or it gets trampled over.
I really like that Marci – simplified focus. I could have just written that and made my point in a more simplified and focused way. Oh well. You did it for me. I’m the same way — need my quiet time. I struggle with wanting to do it all and also wanting to cut back, but, in the end, I know I need to simplify and do what matters most. I guess many of us feel the same way. Have a great weekend, Marci. xo
This is cool, It helps me to stay in focus and moving forward. Thanks for sharing.
Focus is a powerful thing, Candice. Glad my essay helped.
Excellent post Katie. I believe that Natalie Goldberg is a fabulous writer!
I loved your blog!
Nick, I totally agree. Natalie is one of a kind. Thanks for enjoying.
Katie,
I think you are dead on here! I, too, have struggled with all these issues…how to have more time, but also because there are so many things I LOVE, and am INTERESTED in that it is hard to collate it all into a workable life….especially with 3 kids still at home.
Still, I have managed through intent, to rediscover my biggest passions and let go of things that just don’t fit into my life now. Just because I am purging some interests now doesn’t mean I can’t visit them in the future…..
AND….When I visit them I hope to be sitting on a beach in Bali, doing yoga. My oldest sister lives in Jakarta and has land in Bali that I look FORWARD to that door. I may even wear a yellow skimpy bikini…cause that is as close as I would get to being nude. (Still some image issues to work through, even after all those marathons:)
GREAT post, as always!
In Harmony,
Jen
Jen, it seems creating a workable life is a universal desire and struggle. And you’re right, everything and anything can be revisited — of course, you’ll have to save me a spot in the sand next to you in Bali — please.
Hi Katie
Another brilliant post. You have this wonderful style of writing that reaches inside of people, that connects with them at their core. It really is quite beautiful and inspiring.
Yes as much as we would like to still be able to continue doing all of the same thimgs we do now and have our big writing dreams open up before us, the truth is it takes sacrifice and commitment. Lots of commitment.
I wish you all the best in whatever you decide and look forward to following your progression on this blog.
Cheers
Thea
Thea, thank you so much for the encouragement. I’m beginning to see the path more clearly and as I do, it’s interesting how my awareness of what has blocked me for so many years is becoming clearer too, and slowly falling by the way side. Best of luck moving towards your big writing dreams.