THERE’S A HOLE IN MY SIDEWALK: THE ROMANCE OF SELF-DISCOVERY

Debbie McKenzie, Mar 20, 2021 • 5 min

Our journey back to our true selves and the unravelling of our conditioned, unconscious core beliefs that have held us in lack and limitation takes courage and a willingness and patience and a lot of trust. This journey also requires that we be kind to ourselves, be of light heartedness and remember our humanness as we navigate all the experiences that may at times seem as though we are not making any progress at all. I resonate with this poem by Portia Nelson and how she so brilliantly demonstrates how it can take repetitive experiences in unwiring and rewiring our neurobiological pathways when we are learning new ways of being in the world.

I walk down the street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I fall in.
I am lost… I am helpless.
It isn’t my fault.
It takes forever to find a way out.

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I pretend I don’t see it.
I fall in again.
I can’t believe I am in the same place.
But, it isn’t my fault.
It still takes me a long time to get out.

I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I see it is there.
I still fall in.
It’s a habit.
My eyes are open.
I know where I am.
It is my fault. I get out immediately.

walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I walk around it.

I walk down another street.

By Portia Nelson

There’s a Hole in My Sidewalk: The Romance of Self-Discovery