Working on "A"

After we break our hour’s silence, our small circle of worshipping Quakers often speak of “joys and concerns.”

In these hard times, we share mostly concerns.

Last Sunday, one woman’s comment seemed particularly urgent. “If anyone can tell me how to get from A to B, I’d appreciate it,” she said in frustration.

I wondered about how she had framed the problem: Getting from A to B.

She felt the need to reach a goal (at least it wasn’t “Z”), but she was stuck in the misery of her present.

This is going to sound a lot like Eckhart Tolle, but could it be that progress is all about ridding ourselves of “B”? If there is a “B” out there, by the time you reach it, it will be the new “A.”

Life is a river of “A”s. “B” is always around the bend.

The trick is navigating “A," being in and managing The Now, as Tolle has written,

“A” is all we have — ever.

Afterwards, I shared my thoughts with the woman. “Work on A,” I encouraged her. I think she understood.