Autumn is the perfect time to think deep thoughts. The colors are magnificent. The forest scents delicious. Cozy sweaters and chunky boots replace T’s and flip flops. Eyes gaze upwards and inwards simultaneously and that is the perfect condition for contemplation. No dark, depressing winter grumbles just yet.

My mind keeps returning to the Allegory of the Cave. I was late to the philosophical game and only learned of it a few years back. I was considering a major life shift at the time of discovery and it helped me to take the leap of faith and leave a full-time career.

If you are unfamiliar with Plato’s Cave, here is an imperfect summary:

Imagine prisoners chained together in a cave. Behind the prisoners a fire burns, and between the fire and the prisoners are people carrying puppets which cast a shadow on the other side of the wall. The prisoners watch these shadows, believing them to be real. They fill their days and nights engaged in this life.

One day, a prisoner realizes the chains that bind them are loose. They could all leave the cave if they so desired! Freeing himself from the chains, he sees the fire burning and realizes the shadows in front are fake.

The prisoner stumbles out of the cave and discovers the brilliant outside world, suffering retinal shock as a result. Ecstatic (with a feeble heel-click and woot woot!), he returns to the cave to free the other prisoners, thinking they will be as joyful as he.

Instead, he is met with hostility; the other prisoners, terrified at having their depiction of reality challenged, are angry. They do not want to be freed because they are comfortable with their lives, watching the shadow play. They collectively decide the man is insane and tell him to piss off.

The Allegory of the Cave 

ruminates on the nature of

belief vs knowledge.

Reality, not being chock-full of pretty unicorns and glittery rainbows, can be a real kick in the pants. The rain is cold at times, the fire burning in the cave warm and cozy.

The world that awaited me outside the cave after leaving teaching was not as I had imagined. It has been challenging. Earning a living through multiple streams of income involves skills that I am still honing. Do I regret my decision? No. The lessons I have learned, namely my ability to trust myself and own my decisions, have been well worth the shock of cold rain pouring down my face. Did I have to ‘leave the cave’ to learn these lessons? I did. But someone else might not have needed to take such a drastic measure. The perimeter and depth of our individual caves differs greatly. Comparison is impossible.

The power of possibility, the power of dreaming, is our divine right. Whether or not we exercise this right often depends on many factors, some that can feel beyond our control. But if we do not allow ourselves the odd daydream or two, how can we make different choices, dare to live differently?

I was lucky enough to catch up with a solid gal pal over a good lunch recently. We discussed the right to dream. As adults, this seems a luxury – scornful fantasy-making. When did we lose this innate ability? To ponder possibilities is one of humankind’s super powers.

reclaim your

right to dream!

A little cave I have been shackled in recently involves the cabin project. It took me awhile to realize how imprisoned I had become. What began as a labor of love quickly morphed into a clingy albatross draped around my neck, pecking at my ear.

As resentment grew, I could only entertain two extremes: hire others to complete all of the work, or hammer a Coming Soon! sign down on the nearest dirt pile. (I realize this is a small problem, even a good problem, to have. But hey, it is prudent to practice leaving tiny caves before tackling big ones.)

All I needed to do was step outside and look at things from a new perspective. I needed to stop believing the HGTV images of perfect renos magically completed within mere days. It is not humanly possible to achieve this without a plethora of trades working feverishly (and solely) on your project. And a designer to stage the damn thing.

The answer I received was surprisingly simple: umm, why not just take a step back? Why do you have to decide anything right now? The simplicity of it, and the difficulty I had arriving at it, makes me question how I put one foot in front of the other every day.

How ridiculously simple. Step back. Observe. Stop reacting.

Our timeline has gotten much longer with the project. I am okay with that.

Once something is felt, it is known, and impossible to ignore. Daring to leave a cave of your choosing (I have found myself dwelling in many caves watching shadow play, and still do) is nodding hello to a new perspective, an unknown world.

Brace yourself for some cool, refreshing rain. Downpours will be broken with intermittent sunshine. Guaranteed.