Look, I hate being boxed in. Walking through the catacombs in Paris? No thank you. Entering an elevator with more people than you’d be comfortable getting stuck with? Also, no.

Like I’ve said before, boxes have a tendency to make me panic.

But the thought of a boundless field also induces twinges of panic–what if there are snakes? Or the irrational fear of getting stuck in a gigantic building like Ikea alone at night.

And really, what is being human in the age of civilization if not a dance between confines and freedom?

And so out of necessity of not constantly giving myself emotional whiplash, something I’ve come to learn is that sometimes the box I think is there isn’t really there at all. Instead, what’s actually making me panic is the unbounded freedom and my mind, not knowing what the hell to do with said freedom, has instead opted to create a box.

Sure, we can call them limiting beliefs or limiting decisions, but what they really are is an invisible box we’re creating to keep our egos safe and in familiar territory.

But what if the box isn’t there? And what if roaming was exactly what you needed to find the next things you want to pursue?

I know that’s been exactly what I’ve needed. Maybe the task is getting comfortable with the unfamiliar. When we don’t arbitrarily box ourselves in, the path to the edge of the field suddenly becomes clear.

xx,