Lessons from the Preserve

5 Life Lessons from One Mini Adventure

I have been feeling a little odd for the past few days. Not sick, just unsettled. I decided to unplug for the entire weekend. On this point … you didn’t see me here. But I need to get my thoughts down before I forget them.

I do what I always do to manage the unsettledness. In true Walden fashion, I went out into the woods. Near our home is Rye Preserve. I’m not sure whether the trail map is confusing or it’s simply my terrible sense of direction (probably a combination of the two), but I decided to wander.

I found a sign for the Red trail loop and followed it around past the kayak launch and back to the parking area. I thought it was a quaint little trail, but I wasn’t nearly finished. I thought I’d seek out some other trails. But as I walked down the road, I saw two other Red trail signs. I followed each of them and eventually saw how parts of them spilled out onto the trail I had been on. Other parts led to dead ends. And, in fact, I found a total of five Red trail signs, and each appeared to be trailheads.

As I always do on my outings, I send out my little messages to the universe. I set my intentions. I ask questions. And then, I listen…

The universe, my subconscious… whatever, was talkative today. And in my profound confusion, I left with some valuable takeaways that apply to work and life.

1. “You are thinking too small. Think bigger.” I was stuck on the small loop, not realizing that it connected to a much bigger loop. I had to mentally zoom out to see the larger, bigger loop. “Get off the small loop. Expand your thinking and your reach. What else haven’t you thought of yet?” MESSAGE: THINK BIGGER and BROADER.
2. There were five entrances to the same trail, and all worked. As I explored, I started to see how they connected. “How do all the varied aspects of your life and work interconnect? What connections haven’t you made yet?” MESSAGE: THINK LOGICALLY and CREATIVELY. LOOK FOR CONNECTIONS.
3. More on that, “there’s more than one approach to a project or idea. Try looking at it from varied angles.” MESSAGE: SEEK OUT OTHER PERSPECTIVES.
4. Parts of the trail led to dead ends. Some were beautiful dead ends, like the kayak launch over the water. And others just stopped at a tangle of trees. “In what ways are you following dead ends and wasting time? Do you need to cut those out of your life? Conversely, what paths may be temporary and yet are worth following to their natural conclusion? Just because they end doesn’t mean they weren’t successful.” MESSAGE: CUT OUT ANYTHING THAT DOESN’T FEED THE LARGER LOOP (i.e., goal).
5. “Notice how the main loop circles around and around and becomes more interesting and expansive? What areas of your work naturally keep feeding into one another and growing? Because that’s where the real success lies.” MESSAGE: FIND THE HEART OF THE LOOP and NURTURE IT.

A successful adventure, I would say. Now, to unplug. But first, I need a shower. I smell like bug spray and am pretty grungy.

Originally published at https://birdlandmediaworks.com on June 26, 2021.

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