Article July 12, 2010 Issue

DROP THOSE ROCKS

The unresolved issues of the past have only the weight we give them.

By Frederick R. Andresen

WE ALL CARRY TOO MUCH WEIGHT. We know we are supposed to examine what we want to leave behind, and clear the path ahead for progress and a better life. But sometimes we don't know what to discard. It may require an inventory of baggage before we take action.

Think, for example, of that old tale about four boys climbing in the Rockies toward a lake above the timberline. They were all seasoned climbers except one. When the majority wanted to stop and catch their breath, the new boy charged ahead.

So, at one rest stop they forced him to sit down. Then when he wasn't looking, they slipped a rock into his backpack, alongside his sleeping bag, camera, and frying pan. At the next stop they did the same thing. By the time they got to the lake, the new boy was the last to arrive, huffing and puffing under his load.