The Circle

One lasting takeaway from my USAF career was something I learned at the Resistance Training portion of SERE school. We were taught to picture our essential needs as being contained in a circle. In a POW situation, these are quite simple – medical attention, food & water, and other Geneva Convention rights. It would be our goal to maneuver all interactions with our captors to be 'inside the circle' – to not let them pull us outside of it and get us off-balance. Whenever drawn out of the circle, we would need to focus our energy on getting back inside as quickly as possible. "Look, I can't remember anything about that secret radio on the plane because all I can think of is that I haven't eaten in 4 days and you just yanked my shoulder out of its socket. Give me medical attention, let me eat and rest, and *then* maybe I will be able to think more clearly". You get the idea.

I still often use this circle of well-being analogy to understand & assess circumstances in my life. When thus discontented about something, what got me out of my circle? Did someone pull me out? No; inevitably, I left it on my own accord. My ego is usually to blame - everything outside of my current circle has unreasonable selfishness at its foundation. I choose to upset my healthy balance & flow by disproportionally pursuing something outside– whether it's some 'point' or idea, a 'last word', or some other explanation or defense of something not truly worth my energy & attention.

I know fully well when I'm outside of my circle. Physically, I'm on edge; my 'fight or flight' instincts kick in. Even mildly, I still feel those instincts transform my body and thoughts. Though I am not in physical danger (hopefully!), I am certainly in emotional danger, and nothing good ever comes from that. I must honestly assess the most prudent way to get back inside my circle, and thus rightly return to the serenity and sanity present there. Most often, it is not the easiest or shortest route, though that one may be most tempting! When I understand & admit that I'm the one who actioned myself out of my circle, the true path back in then assuredly becomes clear. But that admission can be one heckuva tall order sometimes, especially in the heat of the moment ;)

Progress, not perfection.
Keep moving forward one step at a time.
Do the next right thing.
Keep inside the circle!

A work in progress…
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