Do I Want To Die On This Hill (1 Viewer)

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Linda

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This is an old saying, but one that I've heard several times lately. I get an inner shudder because my grandfather fought in WW 1, my father, WW 2, and friends in Viet Nam. I do understand how powerful this idea is. It is one that brings you up short. You take a pause and consider the people, the situation, and then decide what to do.

A similar saying is "pick your battles", and is one with which I grew up because there were quite a few battles. I recall my mother teaching me to look at my dad's body language as he walked to the front door after work. As a child, I learned when and when not to ask him something. Both ideas paid off in my work life, as well.

It is not something that comes up in my private life now - I usually am able to flow with rhythms and energies. However, there are times when I'm around others who are taking early steps in their awareness, and this is where I've been hearing this phrase. They are stopping an established behavior pattern for a moment and considering if they want to continue. Well, yea for that!

Still something nags at me about this phrase. It seems win-lose, yes-no, black-white, live-die. One of the things that I've noticed as I made the choice to slow down, drop the multi-tasking, and take time just for me, is that there is so much more to see and feel. With a few minutes of just being, insight often flutters in and several options appear. I believe this is a way to be successful co-creators in our lives.

Recently, I knew an event would arise, and I was working my best for its success. Out of the blue, the time line changed and what I thought would be 2 weeks turned into 2 days. I'll be honest - I thought I might lose my mind. However, what I did first was to ask for support from trusted friends. When I thought the worst might happen on that hill, I stopped and felt the support of friends / God / Source (whatever you wish to name it). That, my friends, made all the difference.

Ok, I've taken you all the long way around the barn twice, but I think I've worked it out.

I'm ok with people using this phrase because it does serve as a change in awareness. I see my role as one to softly suggest that taking a bit of time for contemplation about all kinds of things might make the passage easier. Maybe there are things to do so we don't have to get to that hill. Or if we do, then there are ways to bring in help so we can survive.
 

therium

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IMO, "picking your battles" leads to healthier boundaries, which leads to more wisdom, and that's a good thing. Much in life are lessons to be learned.
 

Pucksterguy

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The way I see it, Linda is we have reached the age where we've done our job, done our time and retired. Time to take some time for our selves. C'mon lets go fishing.
 

Snowmelt

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I've never heard the expression, but I can relate it to a military situation. Thankfully, I haven't had to face head-on war in this life - although the idea of it is always at the outskirts, because we keep interfering in other people's business.

I think it is good to be conscious of where harm might come from, and to avoid it if possible. That probably means being more centred, and quiet of mind, yes!
 
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Linda

Linda

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I've heard it a couple more times since I wrote this post.
I pay attention to little things like this because they are an indication of something changing in the human psyche.
 

Anaeika

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I haven’t heard of this phrase either, but changing hill to valley makes more sense to me: Do I want to die in this valley?

Also, my father fought in Vietnam, my grandparents in WW2, & great grandfather in WW1.
 

Snowmelt

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I haven’t heard of this phrase either, but changing hill to valley makes more sense to me: Do I want to die in this valley?

Also, my father fought in Vietnam, my grandparents in WW2, & great grandfather in WW1.
Has your father ever talked to you about what fighting in a war meant to him? and about the outcomes and whether the world was changed for the better in any way (given that US participation was not on the winning side....???) My own father only talks sparingly about his war experiences. He was present on Balikpapan when the Japanese surrendered in WWII. The aftermath of the end took many months, I think up to eight or ten months, just to mobilise people off the island, etc and manage some of the clean up. He NEVER talks about the period before the surrender.
 
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Anaeika

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Hailstones Melt , my dad refused to talk about his experience in the military. His PTSD was most severe & was on 100% disability, which is rare. There are men with missing limbs on 80%. He did have a major episode when he spoke about it and it was really bad. He was drafted into the war and never wanted to do what he did, but did follow orders and was discharged honorably. What he did carried over into his life and he was never the same.
 

Snowmelt

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Hailstones Melt , my dad refused to talk about his experience in the military. His PTSD was most severe & was on 100% disability, which is rare. There are men with missing limbs on 80%. He did have a major episode when he spoke about it and it was really bad. He was drafted into the war and never wanted to do what he did, but did follow orders and was discharged honorably. What he did carried over into his life and he was never the same.
My heart goes out to your Dad in his situation. One person I respect and revere is Gurdjieff, who managed to live in a war-torn area (Georgia) with a small group of followers, and they moved around at the drop of a hat according to his prescience over what location would be safe in the imminent future. In other words, consciousness was his and their safeguard, and probably only worked because he was extremely grounded and centred and had all his channels turned on high.
 
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Linda

Linda

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I heard this phrase again last week. As I wrote this, I realized that not only did the person stop and consider the situation but also shared his thought process. As I know this person, the latter was something of a surprise to me.
 

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