About goals of others that you pursue, ladders against the wrong wall, empty successes – and arriving at yourself
There are questions that sound so simple and yet open up an abyss. One of them is: When was the last time you encountered yourself? Not in passing, not in the mirror between two appointments, but really. Completely.
We so often tell stories about our lives. About places we have seen. About people we have met. About successes we have achieved. And from the outside, it seems as if life is full. But in quiet moments, we may feel: There is a lot of world, but little closeness to ourselves.
It is possible to have been everywhere – and yet never really arrived. Not with ourselves.
The ladder against the wrong wall
Imagine a person who spends their life building a ladder. Rung by rung, year after year, they climb higher and higher, convinced that they are getting closer to the goal. But when they reach the top, they realize: The ladder is leaning against the wrong wall.
How often does exactly that happen? We forgo sleep, joy, and closeness. We endure suffering, give up dreams, sacrifice what was once important to us – only to reach a goal that is not ours. All the effort, all the sacrifices, and in the end the bitter realization: much achieved, but not the essential.
We set goals. We strive. We rush. And sometimes we only realize late that we are chasing goals that have been whispered to us from the outside. Foreign goals. Expectations of others. And so even the greatest successes feel empty.
The silent recognition
But there is this other moment. The moment in which we encounter ourselves. It is not a triumph, no applause, no victory. It is quiet. A “Hey, there you are”. An arrival in one’s own.
Perhaps we are afraid of this encounter because it is honest and tolerates no masks. But it is not harsh. It is kind. It waits.
And if we dare, the fall does not come. What comes is the letting go. And being held – by ourselves.
We are allowed to let go of stories that make us small. To discard expectations that are not ours. To look at guilt and shame and transform them step by step into peace. We are allowed to choose anew: Which path really belongs to me? Which longing comes from my innermost being – and not from the echo of the voices of others?
Arriving at yourself
To encounter oneself means reconciliation. A quiet yes to ourselves. And in this yes we recognize: We were never lost, only on the way. Every detour, every diversion leads us exactly here.
When the voices become quieter, something remains that carries: hope. Not loud, but firm. Hope that we can encounter ourselves. Today. Now. Again and again.
And then life opens up. Not in splendor, not in external proofs, but in truth. In the truth that says: You are enough. You are here. You have arrived.
Perhaps this is the greatest journey we can embark on: the journey to ourselves. Everything else remains empty if we do not find ourselves. But when we meet ourselves – then life begins. Not new, but finally real.
