Life is unpredictable. Plans fail. People disappoint. Circumstances shift without warning. Thus contemplating alternatives demonstrates wisdom and preparation. A potentially better job. A more rewarding relationship. A new lifestyle.
But consider what this reveals about our fundamental stance toward existence: we approach each moment expecting inadequacy. We believe what's happening right now will prove insufficient, and so we're already mentally rehearsing retreat or redirection.
This perpetual hedging creates a peculiar predicament. By postulating Plan B, we never fully inhabit Plan A. We're present in body but absent in commitment, one mental foot positioned toward the door.
The ego mind loves backup plans because they reinforce its core message: you cannot trust this moment. Something better—or at least different—awaits elsewhere. This keeps us in a state of chronic preparation rather than genuine participation.
Yet what if our most reliable backup plan isn't another option but rather a completely different relationship with whatever is occurring? Instead of strategizing our escape from the present moment, we could investigate what it means to fully arrive.
This isn't passive resignation but active engagement with what is, without the mental escape routes that fragment our attention. When we stop reserving energy for hypothetical alternatives, remarkable clarity emerges about the situation actually before us.
As A Course in Miracles teaches, "Safety is the complete relinquishment of attack. No compromise is possible in this." Attack being the perceived insufficiency of current circumstances. Ultimate security lies not in having multiple options but in discovering the wholeness available in the present moment.
Join me in Thursday's class where we'll explore these concepts and discover the profound peace that emerges from complete presence. I look forward to seeing you then.