Keep Walking
Keep walking has become my mantra every time I encounter obstacles and adversity in everyday situations.
I first came across this expression when my mother offered me a souvenir from one of her many trips to India.
It was a T-shirt with a stylized image of Gandhi walking. The T-shirt depicts Gandhi walking holding a wood stick and carrying a simple bag hanging on his shoulder.
I was immediately drawn to that simple yet powerful image. It was deeply relevant to me given my constant quest for personal growth.
Fast-forward a year or so, to a Sunday afternoon stroll in the centre of Ericeira, a beach town in Portugal.
James and I were walking around town when we came across a street market and stopped in front of a bookstand. After looking through the second-hand pile, I pulled out a couple of books that caught my eyes.
“Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet.”
– Thich Nhat Han –
One of the books (apparently not translated to English) is about Zen and The Art of Management.
In this book, I found again the expression keep walking.
Contrary to what I used to think, Zen philosophy is about discipline, rituals and constant improvement, thus the expression keep walking.
This concept stems from the premise that nothing is permanent, constant, or perfect, paving the way for something new and better.
It also implies that in adversity we should not give up and stop. Instead, we must keep walking, in the direction of better things to come.
This movement of going forward represents a constant flow in one’s life, in all of its dimensions.
Now, every time the going gets tough, I think of my T-shirt and say to myself “Just keep walking. Everything will be all right”.
BOOK SUGGESTIONS
If you are interested in learning more about the Zen Buddhist philosophy and the art of mindfulness, here are three book suggestions.
All three books are by Thich Nhat Hanh, the renowned Vietnamese monk and peace activist.
More FOOD FOR THE SOUL here.
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