Life can take us to some amazing places, with our beautiful planet and home itself serving up some of the tastiest dishes designed specifically for enriching our souls. From standing in the mystical throne room at the junction of two mammoth conveyor belts of ice, captivated by the breathtaking wonder of being surrounded by Pachamama’s most awesome and powerful creations that reach far up past the clouds into the heavens and under the ever-imposing stare of the savage king standing alone at the end of the valley, to hearing the soft tinkle of a secret forest stream, winding and whispering its way through the dense, moss-covered undergrowth, wrapped in the woody scent of dew-coated pine and steadily building strength and momentum until it suddenly bursts out from under the cover of the trees to emerge as a waterfall in all of its majesty and glory. These kinds of places have special powers, and they can move us in ways that leave a lifelong imprint on our hearts.
It's not only these enchanting locations in our natural world that can touch us so deeply, though - equally impactful are those other places we visit along life's road: the indelible moment when your little person took their first steps into the world of verbal communication by uttering that simple two-syllable word that instantly became etched into your auditory memory and can now be replayed on demand forever, that unforgettable backyard barbecue party you had in celebration of your daughter's engagement, where you became so immersed in the homey sea of family and friends that six hours passed by in the space of a few minutes and the happiness, fulfilment and feeling of togetherness overflowed in such abundance that the echoes of laughter and joy could still be heard in your heart for weeks afterwards or the magical place you go to every single time you feel the light of the smile that illuminates the whole world, where everything else within your perceptual field gently falls away into silence to leave you standing there on your own in the dream you could quite happily live in forever.
Just as the law of duality dictates that we can't have good without evil or light without darkness, we also can't have joy without sadness, and in the same way that our rollercoaster lives can lead us to places way up high, where we're on top of the world or walking on air, they can also take us down to the depths of despair, where life can feel like a prison of isolation and cruelty and the memory of happiness seems so distant that it's almost forgotten completely. Maybe the most special person you loved so intensely was unexpectedly and abruptly snatched away from you in such tragic circumstances, inducing a potent and overwhelming combination of shock and torturously agonising pain to instantly slice through your heart and cause your every waking moment to be polluted with a dense and seemingly unescapable suffering and shattering your future dreams to leave you abandoned in an empty and alien world where nothing appeared to make the slightest bit of sense. Or perhaps after failing to recognise important aspects of who you are and repeatedly allowing yourself to be surrounded by the wrong people in the wrong environments, you mistakenly understood the persistent and inhospitable sense of dissonance to just be normal and ‘the way of the world’ and allowed your heart to not only believe that you were alone and that you didn't belong, but that your affliction was such that this would always be the case, without even a pinprick of light glinting at the end of the tunnel.
These places are dark, lonely and unrelenting, and if you’re still trying to fight the demons single-handedly, it can be like wandering around alone in blackness, with the only light being shed from the slowly-perishing candle you’re carrying so carefully, slowed down to the pace of a snail by the perceived necessity to cautiously guard its flicker against the ever-present, unpredictable gusts of wind that threaten to leave you lost in an eternal night forever. The distress and pain can wound so deeply that the urge to escape to some form of peace becomes great enough for any option to be considered, and your life can devolve into a never-ending pursuit of short-term ‘fixes’. These temporary antidotes can't be used forever, though, and without some kind of healthy, rehabilitative intervention, the need for some other long-term ‘solution’ remains, growing stronger with each unhealed day that passes until until eventually, the fork in the road is reached.
Although we can each find our way there by means of different paths, through different choices and as a result of different situations, it's the same place that we can wind up at, and it's the same place those 25 remaining Apache found themselves all those years ago. It can often be misunderstood that surrender is always a sign of weakness, but the truth is that it depends on the context, and in many cases, it’s actually a brave act of strength. There’s most certainly honour and nobility in standing up for what you believe in, but there comes a point at which the value of your life outweighs these other considerations, and if it feels like your only choice is for you to take that life then you know you've reached the point in question. Unfortunately, the spirit of the Apache misled the warriors into believing that ‘waving the white flag’ would only serve to brand them as weak, but in reality, submitting to their enemies in that moment would've been the more courageous option and the only one offering any chance for them to ‘fight another day’.
You are so unique. There is nobody else like you, and there will never be anybody else like you. The world needs you, and we need you, because you’re a part of our plan. Although it might not seem like it when you're enveloped in shadow, your life is so precious, and it holds endless possibilities and an infinite number of pathways leading you to special places you could never even imagine. When it feels like everything around you is falling apart, it can be easy to forget about how lucky you are and allow ‘lies’ to try and steal your most valuable gift. If you're in a difficult place right now, never forget that there's a bend in the road just out of sight over the horizon, and waiting for you on the other side of that bend is something incredible that’s going to change your life forever. So, if you ever find yourself at that fork, remember that there’re so many other people who've been to that exact same place, remember just how important you are to all of us and remember that light can emerge from the darkness. Don't let illusion convince you that there's nothing left or that you can never find happiness again, don't let distortion trick you into feeling like you're alone or that you don't belong and don't make the same mistake as those Apache in believing you only have one way out. Find the fight in your heart to keep going and not give up, find the courage to share how you’re feeling with someone, find that last bit of strength inside you to reach out, to ask for help… to surrender. You have it, and we love you…