Lately, I've been thinking about how healing really isn't linear.
Maybe nothing is.
Healing just has a way of making that especially obvious.
A good day doesn't necessarily mean the next day will be good. Sometimes it will be.
Sometimes the next day will feel like a step backward.
But four steps forward and two steps back is still movement.
I think we rely on linear thinking because it gives us a sense of certainty. We want to believe that if we do the right things, follow the right steps, and keep moving forward, we'll know where we're going.
But so much of being human is learning to live without that certainty.
I've been noticing this in a very literal way during my own healing lately.
Walking in a hard neck brace, I've realized how much I naturally look down when I walk.
Looking straight ahead actually feels strange.
There's a part of me that thinks: But how will I know I'm not going to trip over something?
And then I realized,I can still see the ground several feet in front of me.
I can see enough.
I don't have to stare at my feet to know where I'm going. And I don't have to look so far ahead that I'm trying to anticipate everything that might be coming.
Maybe that's the middle way.
Not looking up.
Not looking down.
Looking straight ahead.
Trusting that I can see enough for the next few steps, and that if something unexpected appears, I can respond to it then.
And maybe looking straight ahead doesn't mean believing the path itself is straight.
Healing isn't linear. Growth isn't linear. Relationships aren't linear. Life certainly isn't linear.
We move forward and backward. We circle around things we thought we had already figured out. We have expansive days followed by hard ones. Sometimes what looks like regression is simply another part of the process.
The invitation, I think, is to find our center inside all of that complexity.
To orient ourselves without demanding certainty.
To trust that we can see enough to take the next step.
A Simple Grounding Practice: Straight Ahead
Wherever you are, gently bring your gaze straight ahead.
Notice what you can see without searching.
Feel your feet beneath you. Take one slow breath.
Notice the impulse to look farther ahead,or to look down and make sure everything is safe.
Then come back to what is actually here.
You don't need to see the whole path.
Just notice:
Can I see enough from here?