Day 064s: The pay-off of Persistence … (06/17/2019)
And so it was – once again – that I walked & walked & walked onward – not knowing where I would lay my head; not even knowing whether I would this day lay my head to rest at all. I had heard from other pilgrims about a monastery somewhat off the beaten path that took in mendicant pilgrims, and yet I wasn’t sure where this place exactly was or whether they would take me in even if I were to arrive there. And yet I flowed onward in that general direction nonetheless, remembering as I did so that this Journey was not about me finding shelter or refuge at the end of every (or any) day, but was rather solely about the Walk itself – solely about walking for Peace; solely about walking for my fellow sentient brothers & sisters (and animal cousins). And I would do this “come Hell or high water” – I would do this whether I found shelter (or water or food, for that matter) or not.
And so the success of this particular day was not that I did indeed find said monastery’s “Gite de Notre Dam de Escayrac” (after walking some 37 kilometers, no less). No, the true triumph of this day was that – even when at my wit’s & my body’s seeming ends – I simply kept walking … 😉
“When you’re thinking about the road before you – if not also your current troubles on the same, please remember this above all else: excessive pride is a profound sin, no doubt, and yet a man may just as potently frustrate the Will of God through excessive resignation or lack of resolve.” ~ inspired by Ken Follett
P.S. I think that common views on persistence are fully misguided. We shouldn’t persist in order to “win in the end” or “attain our goal” or “make it” to any particular destination, for the simple reason that to do so is to – at best – attain “victories” banal & hollow and/or – at worst – completely miss a far greater mark (all while falling into frustration & despair). No, the virtuous side of persistence is not focused on its ends but rather intensely attends to its moment-to-moment means. Real and indelible persistence, then, longs not to “arrive at home” at all, but is instead solely concerned with persisting for persistence’s sake – with living an honorable life in the service of a cause greater than one’s self, and this, regardless of whether one ever “makes it” to a desired end or not … 😉
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