Saint-Exupéry writes in The Little Prince of the Little Prince meeting a switchman in a railroad yard. The Little Prince is curious about the trains arriving and leaving.
“They are in a hurry,” said the little Prince. “What are they looking for?”
“The locomotive man ignores himself,” said the switchman .
Then in the opposite direction, a second flashing light rumbled.
“Are they already coming back?” asked the little prince.
“They are not the same,” said the switchman. “This is an interchange.”
“Weren’t they happy where they were?”
“We are never happy where we are ,”said the switchman.
Note: This morning I was speaking to a person who was unhappy with their life. This person said they had no choice but to continue living their unhappy life. They were place bound and job bound. I suggested there were other options, but this person was blind to any other options other than her unhappiness. Where we are is where we are. In the moment that’s the only place we have to be. It may not be what we want but it is where we are. We have a choice of making our situation work for us or fighting against it. When we fight against it we expend needless energy we could to create a happier life.
Anger says:
“I can destroy
The whole world.”
Peace says:
“Not when I work
Inside you.
When I compare
What I have lost with what I have gained,
What I have missed with what attained,
Little room do I find for pride.
I am aware
How many days have been idly spent;
How like an arrow the good intent
Has fallen short or been turned aside.
But who shall dare
To measure loss and gain in this wise?
Defeat may be victory in disguise;
The lowest ebb is the turn of the tide.
Saint-Exupéry writes in The Little Prince of the Little Prince visits planet Earth. He finds himself in the desert.
“The little Prince crossed the desert and met only one flower. A flower with three petals, a flower of nothing.“Good morning,” said the little Prince.
“Good morning,” said the flower.
“Where are people?” The little Prince asked politely.
The flower, one day, saw a caravan passing.
“People? There are, I think, six or seven. I saw them some years ago. But we never know where to find them. They move with the wind. They have no roots, it bothers them a lot…”
NOTE: We all come from someplace. We all have a mother and father and a place of birth. Having a sense of roots and place gives us a foundation on which we can build. They are a source of strength in times of trial. When we have a sense of roots and place, we know who we are and where we are going. I heard a radio host on a gardening show in Texas say, “Give your children a nest and wings.” When we have a sense of roots and a foundation we soar.
