Everyone has to overcome many shadows in their life to find the truth and reach the light at the end of the tunnel. Almost every situation that a person enters has obstacles they have to overcome in order to come out of the situation. My older brother, was faced with an obstacle about a year ago. He was in college, working his way up to get his teaching credential, but also working in a group home. He is hard worker, whether it be at school or work. One day, his boss offered him a full time job with benefits and a good hourly wage. Obviously he was torn. He was so close to finishing school, but yet, if he took the full time job, he would have to quit school. His boss told him that he could not guarentee my brother a full time job once he had graduated because it would depend on if spots became available. My brother made the wise decision to finish out his college career. Throughout the rest of his college career, my brother, just like every other college student, struggled to pay rent and other various bills, he struggled getting into classes and keeping his grades up in these classes even though he worked hard. All of these things were shadows that were blocking his sunlight, and sometimes it seemed impossible for him to reach the light at the end of the tunnel. There were many times that he wanted to give up and take the full time. But then again, who wouldn't? He would be able to quit school, make a good amount of money, and have a base to start his career and work his way up in the company. There were many times he would pick up the phone to call his boss, and then put it down because although it was the easy way out, he knew getting a degree was worth the time and energy.
Finally, he graduated. And now, he does not regret a single moment of the struggle. He now has a full time job getting paid twice as much the amount his boss offered and is more educated than he ever could have imagined. With the help, support and courage of family and friends, my brother pulled through and took the long road to success. He climbed mountains and jumped through hoola hoops, but in the end, made it to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
It's interesting that you hone in on the obstacles that complicate the path to self-discovery or fulfillment here. I like the synonym "hurdles" in this context. Hurdles block a runner's progress on the race track and even signify potential sources of harm or complete derailment (running into the hurdle takes the sprinter out of the race), yet they are also part of the race that represents its contest and achievement.
ReplyDeleteThis metaphor could be even further extended to your brother's story. The runner has to train hard both to complete and to win the race. He made the choice to complete his training, which in his case was his college education. All the obstacles involved in this (low funds, hard work, stress etc) ended up being almost necessary to the race. This would mean that they are not just shadows to be overcome: they are part of the journey, integral to the essential composition of our path through life.
So, while in part they are similar to shadows in the cave because they do weigh down and significantly complicate our progress, obstacles like the ones he faced are also symbolically connected to that path out of the cave to, as you put it, the light at the end of the tunnel. They can get us down and make it very difficult, leading to stress, pain, frustration, even desperation, but if we overcome them they're no longer simply shadows, but steps in the lesson of life itself. In a sense, they help us see more clearly-- the work we want to do, what we need to learn to acquire that skill and career etc-- and as such are as much part of the light. I've always been fascinated by how good for me hard times can often be, if I have the right perspective and actually let myself learn the lessons life means to teach me through them.
This is of course a theme as old as myths and stories are. It's a central theme for "O Brother Where Art Thou", which itself is based on Homer's classic "The Odyssey", which is where that word 'odyssey' came from. A couple other great movies with personal odysseys amidst great trials of character in them that might interest include "Jerry Maguire", "Shawshank Redemption", and the especially funny and enlightening movie "Dutch" (who is played by Al Bundy!). Let me know if you'd like to discuss any of these further and see you soon.