Impenetrable
Whenever you find yourself surrounded by walls (figuratively speaking, of course), do you find yourself forgetting there was ever life outside of ‘em? It can happen; especially when it starts to drag on and on…
The Green Mile
The other day I was driving along a sortof a back road; a 2-lane, plain asphalt road running through some of the sparsely populated areas north of Houston. The thing is, both sides of the road were bounded by this amazing high and thick, green wall of vegetation. Some places it was so deep you literally couldn’t see through it at all. I was struck by how “canyon-like” it felt; sorta like driving down a Green Mile.
Have you ever been in a canyon – some place where the rock walls tower above you on at least two sides (maybe even three)? It can feel pretty confining, can’t it; especially when the walls are high and the light is dim. This road was no exception; trees on both sides were so tall it gave everything a dim, muted feel. (Ulp; glad it was daylight! No tellin’ what monsters and other assorted evil creatures lurked in the darkness at night.)
One thing about canyons – they can block your view, don’t they? What I mean is, the walls of the canyon are so close, so “in your face”, it can be easy to forget about what an unobstructed view is like.
In fact, it’s sorta like when you’re facing a major trial of some kind, isn’t it? You get so caught up in the immediacy of what needs to be taken care of right now, you can easily forget there ever was an unobstructed view, once.
But as we all know, challenges are there for us to conquer, right? Ramparts can be conquered, barriers knocked over, and seemingly impenetrable green walls… well, let’s put it this way. Notice the sky peeping through the green in that photo? I drove a little farther along, and you know what was on the other side – only a few feet away? A huge, open pasture, full of horses merrily grazing away at the bounty at their feet!
Just goes to show ya; if you let a wall stop you, you might be missing something… delicious!
Just sayin’.
Faced Any Walls Lately?
Ever faced any walls? (And if you answer “no” to that question, well, I’m afraid I’m just gonna hafta call ya out as a low-down dirty dog liar! Kidding!)
Maybe… you’re in one now? Are you having a hard time remembering what it’s like when the sky is wide and the land is flat and open? Hey, why don’cha get it off your chest and tell us about it? We’re here to lend a hand – or at least an encouraging word or two.
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Photo: Impenetrable, by Robert Hruzek
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Middle Zone Musings is a comfortable place to stop, have a cup of coffee, swap a few stories and share practical ideas for the real world. I don't ask for much, just a bit of your brain every now and then. Have a seat, take a load off, and relax...
Hi Robert, Yes, lately I have had the feeling of being trapped in a couple aspects of my life, where every option looks equally bad. Sigh. The best I can do is focus on the job at hand, and try to remember that things always look darkest before the dawn.
@Brad – Gee, that doesn’t sound good. But I know whereof ye speaketh, I’ll tell ya. I think you have the right idea, though; sometimes the best course is to just keep on keepin’ on, y’know?
Hey, if there’s anything I can do to help, lemme know, y’hear?
Hi Robert, MZM – Thank you for the support here and on Twitter. I think my comment may have come across more serious than it is, but I DO appreciate the moral support and kind wishes. Today’s experience is proof positive that social media is far deeper than a lot of business people give it credit for.
Great post. thank you
It is so easy to lose focus in life and there are many things that happen in our day to day lives that obscure the big picture. Thanks for encouraging all of us to penetrate what sometimes seems impenetrable.
Life is easy now a days..we tend to forget the bad happened to us, since we have a numerous of things to look on. Life is very busy of every individual now and people almost forget their past.
@Jay – You’re welcome, Jay; a tip o’ the hat to ya!
@Kay – Easy for a while, rough for a while; that seems to be a common thread through most lives, Kay. You learn as you grow.
Good post. I find that I’ve constructed most of my walls so I’ve been working on dismantling them but there are also walls that I’ve allow others to put up around me. I’m learning, slowly, to watch out for such things so they won’t build up and cause me to spend energy tearing them down.
Robert, do you consider the “Writer’s block” as the walls/barriers? If you did, then I always bumped on the walls several times per week! Go figure, isn’t it horrible, especially when we’ve met the writer’s blocks without any notice at all?
@Laurie – You make a good point about our self-constructed walls, Laurie. If only we could be as industrious on something REALLY productive, right? :-\
@Wilson – I guess you could consider writer’s block as a canyon that’s hard to see out of, sure. And yes, we’ve all been there!
Well, this makes me want to cry, but in a good thank you Lord kind of way. It also makes me want to stamp my feet because I hate crying! Robert, so often you minister these profound truths with the greatest little stories. Your posts knock my socks off and I’m eagerly awaiting that awesome novel you’re writing. Have I ever faced a wall? Ha! I have faced, run into them, climbed over them, laid at the foot of them…well you get the picture. In fact, facing one now so this was truly an encouragement to my sometimes weary heart to strap the helmet tighter and keep going. Bless you Robert, you give good word!
Yeah me too, somehow now i have a very big problem. I mean, my life became a cycle and i really don’t want that. Thanks for this article, it became some of help for me to breakthrough.
@Karen – Gee, so sorry; didn’t mean to make you cry! But take heart, my friend; there’s hope, and freedom, and empowerment, and, well, everything you desire at the end of it. We’re pullin’ for ya, Karen!
@Yuuko – Glad it helped you, Yuuko!
You know I was just thinking that same thing the other day. I get so wrapped up in my work because I love it-I forget there is a whole world out there.
As a runner, when my feet hit the open road-I forget about everything except the unobstructed road ahead and wonder why I ever confined myself to begin with….
Thank you for sharing that wonderful insight!
@Grace – Your very welcome, Grace, and a tip o’ the hat to ya for droppin’ by. Do come back soon, won’t you?
I have faced a wall of course…
It means a problem? am I right?
Well, These past few months I encountered
obstacles that makes me feel uneasy.
Sometimes I feel just like losing hope,
I know its a part of growing up. As you get older, you bear bigger responsibilities..
That’s what we call life…
@Mariel – Growing up – yep; that’s about the size of it. We either do it or we don’t, Mariel.