Widdershins

Have you ever had the desire to go backwards?

     I did just today, an overwhelming, powerful desire to do do something  the opposite of how I always do it. I usually walk Nova in a clockwise direction around my apartment complex. We have our routine and rarely stray from it, in fact I had never really thought about our directional choice until today. But for some odd reason  I felt the desire to walk in the opposite direction. It felt thrilling! Even Nova got excited, tugging on the lead, jumping and playing like it was some new game. 

     We humans are creatures of habit. We drive the same way to work, wander the isles of the grocery store in the same manner, etc. Our lives are one of routine. It helps us to keep chaos at bay and give our lives some semblance of order and comfort. We are taught from a young age that to go backwards in life is to stall out, that for change to happen we must move forward.

      But as I wandered backwards on my evening walk I started to think... going backwards often ushers in change. Revisiting a painful experience often helps us to examine ourselves, which if done in a healthy constructive way can spur personal growth. Rereading a book or re-watching a movie can allow us to see things we missed the first time around. And doing something in the opposite direction we have always done it can open our eyes to new possibilities. We can start over fresh,  look at our relationships in a new light, see things differently...

    I have done a lot of going backwards in the last year, which in its own special way, has moved me forward. It has made me stop and take a look at things, made me appreciate what I have, and made me feel excited about all the new possibilities. Sometimes the going backwards has hurt, but I am thankful for the detour for it made me realize what I really want, made me discover new things about myself, rediscover things I had forgotten, and allowed me to see who I really want to have in my life.

    Widdershins means to walk in the opposite direction of the sun. In ancient times this direction was often used in ritual ceremonies to usher in magic. So take a moment to choose one thing to do backwards today, take a direction opposite of what you normally do....you may just be surprised at what you will notice and the magic that you will discover in your own life. In the words of Robert Frost... Take the path less traveled by.

The Road Not Taken

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim
Because it was grassy and wanted wear,
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I marked the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I,
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

Robert Frost