It’s estimated that, on a flight from London to New York, the plane is only on course for 3% of the time. That means that for the other 97% of the trip, the pilot is course correcting to get back on track. And yet, the vast majority of them reach their destination as planned. (Unless, of course, you happened to be on the recent flight to Dusseldorf that ended up in Edinburgh!)
And that’s a bit like life. We can have a goal we want to achieve and even make an action plan of the steps we need to get there, but life is never that straightforward. We need to be able to course correct if we want to end up at the destination we’d aimed for. The photo above is of a well trodden path that I used to walk or cycle on my way to the lake. It’s now impassible. The bushes have grown over so it’s impossible to get through without ending up with multiple gorse prickles – which can turn surprisingly nasty – septic even – if left untreated. Believe me: I know!
It was quite annoying at first when I realised I could no longer go along the path that I was used to. But I soon discovered other routes to the lake, even more picturesque ones. One took me by a smaller pond another, through a dark track under the trees on the very edge of the lake, and a third led me round the entire lake in the other direction. My goal had never altered but my route did – and I benefited from it. When one path closed: three others opened!
Throughout my life I’ve had many jobs but the one I’ve loved and found the most satisfying is being an author. I’ve written 12 books for teenagers and young adults. I write under a pen name and it’s a job I’ve always wanted to do – from my earliest childhood as I scribbled stories under the bedclothes when I was supposed to be asleep. For 23 years, I wrote: novels, children’s fiction, short stories, poems – you name it: I wrote it. And every single one got rejected.
Did I give up? No, I did not! I read what the publishers had to say about my work, took it on board and tried again. I course corrected – for 23 years – until I reached my goal. And, when the advance copy of my first novel arrived in the post, I wept with joy, made all the more sweet for the journey I’d been on to get there.
I wrote 12 books in 10 years and then my life fell apart. My husband was diagnosed with Stage IV cancer and my writing career didn’t just stop: it crashed into the buffers at full speed. I had neither the energy nor the creative juices to write. I even went back to teaching for several years. That was definitely NOT on my action plan of writing a best seller. But have I given up? Absolutely not! This is simply another course correction. It wasn’t what either of us wanted – or expected. It was a curved ball to end all curved balls. But my husband is in remission now and I’m hoping I can get back on track with my life.
I believe that nothing in life is ever wasted. So, who knows, I might even write a book about our experiences. In the meantime, I’m happy writing this blog. It’s one of the steps on my action plan to get back to full time writing. And, if I get knocked off course, I’m just going to get back up and try again. In the words of Chumbawamba: Ain’t never gonna keep me down!
Enjoy your spiritual holidays whatever your beliefs: Easter, Pesach, Vaisakhi or simply enjoy the springtime!
Reiki in Wanstead 