Odysseys are preceded by Journeys

Before we come to realise who we really are and the place we have in our world(sphere of influence) there is a journey or rather odysseys one has to embark and through the process that which was hidden underneath us sometimes so remote even to people close to us never us but has been there even before we became conscious of them. The tittle had a spiritual undertone and being this quest in one form or another for quiet some time now sealed the decision.

The tittle was catchy that even if the book is in French I decided to dare. Seeing that the was about hearing “your interior compass” I was already excited but it was also sounded like a good read at the start of the year.( the literary journey before the journey of 2024)

The author JULIA talks about how she was able to follow her intuition(internal compass) to somehow reinvent her life into something which she felt she is at the hem of the ship and not merely a spectator because all kinds of external factors were steering her life everywhere. It all started with a simple idea when she was out camping with a group of friends. When growing up we usually find all sorts of paths traced for us depending on our environment and most of us try to conform to what is generally acceptable to the people around us. It might work for while but usually people just start surviving instead of living.

There is one experience she recounts when she she left her longtime partner for apparently no other solid reason other than her intuition told her so(scary for me) and following through this really needs courage because you cannot find solace in the logic of the decision, it is like you are reasoning with your gut. So it is this same kind of feeling that she had when this idea showed up; she wanted to go on a sabbatical year to discover herself more. A sabbatical is a period someone takes rest from work and do other projects . She was 28 at the time so taking this decision took some time to settle in for her.

The book is the journey she took before before actualising the idea. The book is an honest account and that really helps because in most cases when I read these personal development the principles are distilled to their essence that we forget the human aspect of our pursuits because everything is painted in shades of perfection and ideals mostly setting us on wild goose chases ending up more discouraged if we fail to live up to the the idea.

A few lessons

1.ENVIRONMENT

Like a fragile plants new ideas are easily stifled so the most important factor is the ENVIRONMENT and this so crucial because if we are always fighting for survival eve these revelations seem to be shut down. This is because in as much as we can be daring we also need a minimal amount of security. Her relationship with her parents is something remarkable that in as much they can be pragmatic and not in accordance with her decisions she always knew they had her back and she could always go back home. But in some cases it is not so and many a time dreams have died just like that. This extends to the circle of friends and colleagues we have and the environment they create around us.

2.TALKING

You need to be careful about whom you share your ambitions with but by all means you have to share with someone or the dream will be aborted before it even takes any shape. Firstly talking about it specifies what that dream actually is. Speak! because as you speak you be observing the state of your mind , you are judging the authenticity of your pursuit. Secondly sharing these ideas enables us to refine the thought through advice and we will be helped when we share with people who have either gone through a similar route or knows another person.

3.KNOWING EXACTLY WHAT ANIMATES YOU

We can do all sorts of things but only a handful that resonate with our hearts. Firstly it is important to mark those out because it will facilitate the problem of motivation and focus because we don’t have all the time to bring to life our personal legends. The journey to find out what that thing is that is another subject which she does not address a lot but for more of that you can read MASTERY by Robert Greene. One way is too look back in time before you were influenced by all external factors and see what you really enjoyed it might not be exact thing but can give you enough clues. The same thing can be different from your career so don't throw caution to the wind.

4.INVEST IN YOURSELF

It is important to pay attention on this one as most of the time we don't want to invest financially in our dreams. It is not an invitation to start looking scruffy or something but it is very difficult to convince others to help you financially if yourself you cannot put your resources on the line even worse if you have the money but you just want to spend it on other things other than gaining more skill.

5. BE SPIRITUALLY SOUND

In as much as this might look different for different people, at the end of the day people find something they can attach themselves to spiritually( even atheists are so bound to what deem logic that they think it transcends them) for direction and insight as the materialistic world often fall short when it comes to such matters. Like Dr Peterson says it not "DO YOU BELIEVE IN GOD?" but "WHICH GOD DO YOU WORSHIP?". The authour says GOD is not her thing but she eventually goes on to do meditation ,yoga even considering psyching herself with some amazon plant accompanied with enchantment. Find reasonable ways but stay sound.

6.ADJUST YOUR ROUTINE AND GET TO KNOW NEW PEOPLE

Not that you have to leave your old friends or something but if you want to have a good learning experience and experiment new things you have to modify your circle and adjust your routines accordingly. Not doing so is like doing the same things over and over but expecting different results( not so far from insanity). You might drag yourself through with old habits but it will cost you.

7.DON’T BE SO ATTACHED TO PERSONALITIES

In as much as it helps to know your personality it can equally be counter productive in some cases because these personalities can be derived largely from external factors and what others think about us. Which can be a mistake because most of the time we reduce ourselves to these vague terms “I am funny, I am not social” etc. which just imprisons us sometimes hindering us from exploring the beautiful things we can become.

Philosopher’s epilogue( MY THOUGHTS)

I enjoyed the read, it has skyrocketed my confidence to read more french books especially the classics which I would love to read.

My take on spirituality is different but the principles are transferable on the most part and seeing such an earnest account is so amazing and has helped me make steps in my quest too.

The book equally evokes a friend of mine and his journey during his studies. Not the academic part but the spiritual transformation that took place during that period and before he could make the journey back home as an adult he had to go through another journey( son propre voyage avant le voyage).

Till the next one.

great thanks to Frère Bernard for the suggestion and the book in hard copy. People in Mostaganem you can borrow the book at CCM library.

@Chungamu