Steel on the Anvil

I wrote this in the spring of 2015. I sought to find a place where my journey made sense. This was the result.

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Steel on the Anvil

By C. Sonberg Larson

You were brought into being to complete a task, one that provides an essential element needed by the universe in its evolutionary process toward perfection. The unique nature of your assignment is in the hands of no other, and failure leaves a void in the collective wisdom of the cosmos. This task, the burden of your short stay, is to channel your life energy and forge an authentic self.

Your responsibility begins at birth, where you’re given the raw materials for the job, but that’s all you are given. It is you who must build the tools from these materials. It is you who must listen carefully to the universe to map your journey onward. It is you who must gather the knowledge to go further and sidestep the pitfalls along the way. This is not an easy undertaking. It’s often wracked with so much pain and angst that many take refuge along the way, ultimately stopping their journey long before the self reaches the calling of the soul.

Fear is always the culprit. It will rear its ugly head during hardship, times of self-doubt, or social pressure to conform. It is what makes the self question everything: the path, the process, the very nature of existence. If fear wins, actualization stops there and then. The damage of this often goes undetected on the surface, but succumbing to fear ulcerates the mind, creating sickness, madness, and hate; it is how monsters are born. The key to overcoming fear is recognizing what it truly is, the discomfort in forging that which has never been forged before.

Be warned of those who stopped short of their own journey’s end. These individuals are angry, outwardly at their circumstances and others who bullied them to conform, but really their anger is at themselves for being cowards and letting fear win. They don’t even know it, but they hate that you are still on the path toward creation. Your courage cuts them deep, your life a mirror they put away long ago. They need you to quit in order to alleviate their own pain and their means to halt you in your tracks can be quite insidious, often couched within the context of friendship or love. Be gracious toward these lost souls, but keep your distance.

Savor the ebbs and flows of your journey. Setbacks are a necessary part of the growth process. Let love lead you. Reconnect with nature and animals. Seek answers in your dreams—your mind traveled there for a reason. Voyage to faraway places, those of legend, those imbued with magic and lore. Stand at the water’s edge and breathe deeply. Look up at the stars and revel at the infinite within the finite. Ponder the meanings buried in your unique experiences, then share them through kind acts and artistic expression. Be a beacon of light in the darkness. Add to the collective. Create yourself. Do not be afraid.

And as time passes, so shall you be forged, year after year, layer upon folded layer, the sparks from your life’s pounding soaring like fireworks that illuminate the night sky, giving hope to all who thought it wasn’t possible, and calling on them to remember who they were meant to be.

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I still smile when I read it. I hope it speaks to you. 

Best, 

C