Whispering Wyrd

Several years ago someone very dear to me was really struggling. Life was kicking them in the teeth as the saying goes and they just couldn’t find a way out. They were heading down a very dark path, one I was already walking myself and I didn’t want that for them.

We had a lot of long conversations and I tried to help in whatever way I could. But what really helped them, what became a turning point in their life, was Stoicism. They picked up a book called Meditations by Marcus Aurelius and that one book led them deeper into the study and practice of Stoicism.

What came after that was nothing short of astonishing. Their life changed so dramatically and so quickly that it was stunning to witness. They went from feeling trapped, with no clear path forward, to moving to a new state, landing a dream job, and finding the love of their life. It remains to this day the single most dramatic positive turnaround I’ve ever seen.

They credit it to Stoicism. To me it’s a powerful example of the power of the mind. When somebody finds even just a small spark of hope, a new perspective, and something to hold on to. It can be literally life changing.

It just goes to show yet again there is no one-size-fits-all path to healing or recovery. I’ve heard so many people say, with arrogant certainty, that “Jesus is the only real way to peace”. I understand where that conviction comes from, and for a lot of people, that path truly does bring healing and transformation. But it’s not the only path.

I’ve seen with my own eyes that people find their way through a lot of different doors through faith, through philosophy, through recovery programs, through community, through inner work.

The thing that matters isn’t which path somebody takes, it’s that they find a way out of the darkness. That they heal and grow. If someone turns their life around, if they get clean or sober and if they become a better, kinder, and more peaceful person then that’s something worth celebrating, regardless of how they got there.

We don’t all walk the same road. But we can still honor each other’s journeys.

Amituofo
~Buck

Photo Credit: Ty Britt