Sometimes, when life hands us a heavy burden, our first instinct is to find a detour. We look for the quickest exit, the easiest distraction, or a way to simply pretend the pain isn't there. Mark Nepo’s beautiful words remind us that true healing isn't found in avoidance. It isn't a shortcut or a side path; it is a journey straight through the center of our experiences. To go around something is to leave it waiting for us in the shadows, and eventually, those shadows always catch up. To go through it means to face the discomfort, to feel the sting, and to allow the process to transform us from the inside out.
In our everyday lives, this looks like the moments we try to suppress our sadness with endless scrolling on our phones or burying our stress under a mountain of work. We think we are being productive or resilient, but we are actually just building a dam against a river that needs to flow. When we bypass our feelings, we stay stuck in the same loop, never actually processing the lessons that the struggle is trying to teach us. Real growth happens when we stop running and start sitting with the difficult parts of our story.
I remember a time when I felt completely overwhelmed by a personal loss. I tried so hard to be the strong, cheerful duck that everyone expected me to be. I stayed busy, I smiled through the tears, and I told everyone I was fine. But underneath, I felt like I was drowning. It wasn't until I finally allowed myself to sit in the quiet, messy, and painful reality of my grief that I felt the light start to return. I had to walk through the dark woods of my sadness to find the clearing on the other side. There was no way to skip the forest, but facing it was the only way to find peace.
It is okay to feel the weight of your world right now. It is okay if the path looks steep and the terrain feels rocky. Please remember that every tear shed and every difficult moment faced is a step toward your wholeness. You aren't just enduring the pain; you are navigating your way back to yourself. Don't be afraid to let the waves wash over you, because they are carrying you toward a calmer shore.
Today, I want to encourage you to take a gentle breath and check in with yourself. Is there something you have been trying to avoid? Instead of looking for a way around it, try just acknowledging it. You don't have to solve everything at once; you just have to be present for the journey.