It is one thing to climb a mountain. It’s hard. It’s tiring. It’s character development. But it is a completely different thing to climb a mountain, go back down, and then lead a team back up the same mountain, just so another can enjoy the view also.

I know it’s rewarding to do something you never thought you could do. Stick it out a moment longer. Take the difficult path. You come out stronger. You value life more than you could have ever dreamed. Your fears that go bump in the night seem less frightening. But that’s not the end.

Do you know that we never truly arrive. We never get there. It’s all a journey and we continue until the day we die. I know mostly everyone’s heard the saying by now, but I can’t help repeating it.

If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him.

Most people have heard the first chapter of the Tao,

“Tao that can be named is not the eternal Tao.” (So if you think you see the real Tao, kill it and move on). http://www.dailybuddhism.com/archives/670

If you think you have arrived, or even haven’t arrived yet but should have arrived, stop what you’re doing. That picture you have in your head, that fantasy of perfection, is only a lie. It’s as fake as plastic flowers. Throw it away. The discomfort you feel, the coffee stains on your shirt, the lost socks, and the spilled milk, are all part of your real life. Side by side they are the threads, the knots, and the whirls that create your life and there’s no true finished project. Although there are moments that leave you breathless and the view is spectacular.

You may not have made it to the top of the mountain, but you can still help someone else. Give to a charity. Hold someone’s hand during a crisis. Help out at the food bank. Pass a tissue or a smile. If you’re not quite as far along the path as you thought you should be, it’s okay. You’re farther than the person behind you. Rest a minute, let them catch up. Help each other out.

B4Peace have committed to dedicating at least one post a month with the theme Peace.  Here are few others:

theworldoutsidethewindow

Comments from Cathy

melanielynngriffin

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