The Second Arrows

“Press on, regardless.”― Mary Stewart

“The Buddha speaks about the ‘second arrow.’ When an arrow strikes you, you feel pain. If a second arrow comes and strikes you in the same spot, the pain will be ten times worse. The Buddha advised that when you have some pain in your body or your mind, breathe in and out and recognize the significance of that pain, but don’t exaggerate its importance. If you stop to worry, to be fearful, to protest, to be angry about the pain, then you magnify the pain ten times or more. Your worry is the second arrow. You should protect yourself and not allow the second arrow to come, because the second arrow comes from you.”― Thich Nhat Hanh, Your True Home: The Everyday Wisdom of Thich Nhat Hanh

First arrows come.
Second arrows are our own.
Our response.
Worry. Fear. Overdoing. Fixing. Complicating.
The past. The future. Missing the present.
Struggles a given.
Our response, our own.
Pause. Do less. Deep breath.
Give some space between stimulus and response.
Shoot a few less second arrows today.
Choose well.
New day, new eyes.

“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.” – Viktor E. Frankl