I need a moment; a little wisdom perhaps...

Nice metaphor! I wonder though, is it necessary to tell the other elephants? Examine why you're feeling the need to explain anything, especially that you now perceive that they are tied down. I don't understand why you can't just stroll away in a friendly but loving way.

Note: IMO, everyone needs some sort of stake... but you should be free to plant yours where you will.

Harmonic,

It IS a pretty metaphor. What is the context? Are you twelve, twenty-five, or fifty-five? What are your family circumstances; dependant, or a responsible spouse and/or parent?

It may be a laudable aspiration to fully experience the wide world, to fully develop our own potentialities. What is less clear is how one might go about it, and still remain a responsible person. It is not necessary to travel to far places to find wisdom, or insights. If you live fully and mindfully, you can find enlightenment at the bottom of a coal mine.

There is a story titled "Acres of Diamonds" that was popular about a hundred years ago. A lad dreams of wealth, and leaves his little farm to find his fortune. He leaves behind the daily drugery of rising before the sun to milk cows, and then to sweat away his days year after year walking behind a plow. He chases after every rumor that gold has been discovered. He endures freezing cold in the far North, and is tormented by the sting of jungle insects. Always he arrives too late, or finds that the reports are incorrect. Back at his farm, things fall apart and weeds crowd out the corn. His sweetheart marries another, and soon has a fat child to bounce upon her knee. Years speed by, as they do. The lad grows old and the harshness of his search leave their marks upon his body. Finally, as an old man he returns home from his travels. He had seen all the wonders of the world, fought bandits and endured imprisnment as he wandered the face of the earth looking for his fortune. He came up the old lane leading to his his home, but it was all unfamiliar. His childhood friends had grown fat next to their hearths. The bank had foreclosed his farm, and sold it to the town fool for a song. The fool had tried farming, but nothing seemed to grow well on the land. One day the fool took one of the hard stones that littered his field into town and asked what it was. The stones turned out to be diamonds of unusual size and clarity. Now the fool lived in a mansion built from the proceeds of acres of diamonds, and the farm lad who went off to seek a fortune came to the door a begger.

truth
Funny how things turn out.

"I could be bound in a nutshell and consider myself king of infinite space were it not that I have bad dreams."



Shakespeare

I'm guessing that harmonic is fairly young, lives in a relatively isolated area, and has very strong family ties.

And her father recently died, or some terrible argument ensued, causing an irreparable rift in the father/daughter relationship.

She feels guilty about leaving her brother and other siblings behind, but realizes if she stays she will wither.

I say go for it, harmonic. Take a trip. Pull up those roots.

Of course, I'm probably wrong about all this and maybe she is merely looking for something else.

Who knows?

Thanks for listening. I really apreciate a good objective view. The responses here have helped me quite a bit. I can see a little more clearly.

Or maybe not... the "duality of man" is still hard at work. Sometimes a person should be grounded and sometimes not. I also think there's some urge to run away from responsibillites. I hate it but might as well admit it.

Mostly what we try to run away from is suffering, or ourselves. You can't run so fast, or so far as to escape either. Usually it is better to stand solidly on your feet, look the demon in the eye and slug it out.

Not always.

If you are in a relationship dominated by violence, alcohol, drugs, or that endangers you, or your children; get out now and don't look back. You don't have to be a punching bag. Children are resilient, but they deserve a better start in life than living in a household where danger is omnipresent.

If you are a single adult, sound of body and mind, and haven't yet left the nest, perhaps it's time. A bird that never tests its wings will perish. Each of us ultimately is responsible for our own life. Children don't grow up to necessarily have the same strengths, beliefs and goals as their parents. Each generation must live in a somewhat different world than the previous. Some things don't change; duty, honor, country, love relationships, the need to make a living, and the laws of physics.

The world is much different now that it was when I was young, and so my sons have to operate/live differently than I did. If they had never left home and gone out into the world, they would have never finished the process of becoming adults. In the process of establishing their own lives, my sons have adopted ideas and beliefs that are hard for me to understand. There is a wide political gulf between us (one son to my right and the other far to the left). I'm a devout Buddhist, but neither of the boys seems much interested in our religion. They needed to leave home to establish their own lives, and that meant following their own notions of what is right and wrong, and how men should interact with the world. I'm sure that the values that they learned as children still guide them. Though I might have made different choices, I'm proud of those two for their successes and for the character they've shown when challenged by the world.

Now back to you, Harmonic. We don't know your circumstances and that has made it difficult to properly address the "problem" you are trying to resolve. What is the problem? Louisville isn't exactly an isolated hamlet where your access to the "wider world" is limited to a five acre family farm. Why address a letter to a brother, instead of talking to him? If the problem is between you and your father, why can't you look him in the eye and discuss the issues? Do you see what I'm saying? The first step to walking away from that little stake (whatever it is) is to responsibly address it. If the elephant of your metaphor pulls up the stake, where will it go and to what purpose?

I see where you are coming from harmonic. It's a beautifully written metaphor and does make sense.

Like asherman said, "If you live fully and mindfully, you can find enlightenment at the bottom of a coal mine."

At one point in time things that are attainable right now were impossible to attain. Recognizing that fine line IMO is the key. Travelling the world with ease is a luxury that has only been around for less than 50 years. Even though 150 years ago people drempt about travelling the world, they knew it was near to impossible to attain so fulfilment wasn't based on the realitly of achieving that dream. Here's an example. Even though I want to travel to Mars, not being able to go doesn't bother me since it's impossible to get there...right now anyway. At some point in the future there's a possibility that technology will allow for people to travel to Mars. People that wont be able to afford it or can't get away may feel unfulfilled like you do right now, when at one point in time travelling to Mars was impossible. I hope that makes sense.