“Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.” ~ Søren Kierkegaard
When we live life forwards, however tiny our steps on that path, each step creates its own luck and opportunity. Those tiny steps give us the space, wisdom and courage to grow our understanding, however difficult, of what has already passed. Every onward thought or action contributes significance and meaning to the current of our life. Just like each point of color in a pointillist painting has its place in creating the whole picture. In the words of Neoimpressionist artist, Paul Signac, “the separated elements will be reconstituted into brilliantly colored lights”. What an image for imagining the flow of our journey.
Even if our steps take physical form, they begin with an acknowledgment of what was and is, (even if the why isn’t clear), and a commitment to the future.
Captain Sir Thomas Moore, popularly known as Captain Tom, decided, aged 99, to walk 100 lengths of his garden by his 100th birthday, 24 days from his start date on 6 April 2020. He wanted to raise money for the British organization, NHS Charities Together. His original goal was 1000 pounds sterling. The final tally, after tax rebates, was 39 million!!
In 2011, Paul Volker, received a Stage Four cancer diagnosis. Having always wanted to walk the El Camino de Santiago, he decides to walk his version of the 500 mile Camino in his backyard- step-by-step, charting his progress on a map of Spain. In 2014 he was able to travel to Spain to fulfill a dream of walking on the actual Camino. On the day before his death, on October 20, 2021, he spoke to a gathering of friends (via Zoom):
“Don’t fear dying. Fear not living every moment to the fullest.”
And finally:
“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So, you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.” ~ Steve Jobs