"Hit the road, Jack!"

Leaving Home

“One day you finally knew

what you had to do, and began,

though the voices around you

kept shouting

their bad advice---

though the whole house began to tremble

and you felt the old tug

at your ankles…”

                                                                        Mary Oliver, Poet

                                                                        From “The Journey”

“You have not grown old, and it is not too late

to dive into your increasing depths

where life calmly gives out its own secrets.”

                                                Rainer Maria Rilke (translated by Robert Bly)

                                                From “You See I Want a Lot”

            There is an old saying that goes, “you can never go home again,” but there is also a common truth that some of us never leave home.  In many ways it is easier to never leave home---geographically or spiritually.  Certainly, you know what is expected and you don’t have to think for yourself—you just do what you’ve always done.  Nobody is tugging at your ankles and telling you you’re bound for hell.  The down side, of course, is that never leaving home makes it harder to grow up; and harder still to become who you are uniquely meant to be.

            I’ve noticed over the years that there are distinct differences in those who can’t wait to leave home, and those who cling to their tribe.  Those who leave are bitten early by the “wonder bug.”  What’s out there?  What adventures lie ahead?  They’re curious about life, curious about themselves and forever feel hemmed in by the expectations of sameness that staying home favors.  Those who stay home are more inclined toward the safety of the known; of family and community.  The big questions are simply not important to them and asking them is both scary and annoying. They feel threatened by new insights and ways of being that are different from their own.

            If you’re a wanderer who left home without ever looking back, don’t expect accolades from your family or community.  Don’t expect a warm welcome when you come home with all your new-fangled notions and try to convert the natives.  Even Jesus had no luck with that.  It’s going to be cold out there and getting home again takes work.  And, if you are one of the ones who never left the fold, don’t worry.  Life will throw a wrench in your comfort zone when you least expect it.  One sweet day, you’ll wake up and find that the road has made an unexpected turn and you have no idea where you are or where you’re going.

            Living is the great leveler.  Our job here is to grow human consciousness and life provides many opportunities to do just that.  We will all take the journey sooner or later.

                                                            Welcome to the road,

                                                            Jane