Imagined Limitations

When a young elephant is originally placed in captivity, it is trained to comply by tethering its leg to a post. When this first takes place, the small elephant will pull and yank at the rope or chain holding it in place. The cord will rub the flesh raw and even tear open the leg of the poor creature. It’s a sad scene indeed.

Over time, the elephant gradually succumbs to the power of whatever has bound him and he fights it less and less. Eventually he will place almost no tension at all on his bindings, reversing movement as soon as the slightest resistance is experienced.

As the creature grows in stature and strength, the strength of the rope or chain do not. He has learned a certain level of helplessness and no longer tests the power of his confinements. The small chain that once bloodied his young leg couldn’t possibly hold back the five tons he now carries. Even if the chain would hold, the mature elephant would easily pull the stake out of the ground just like you would pluck a carrot out of your garden. Yet he remains confined, unaware that physical limitation no longer has power over him. The physical limits don’t matter if his mind is convinced chain will stop him.

I think you can see where I am going with this. We all have limitations we impose on ourselves because they existed at one point in the past. Maybe they still exist but we, like the elephant, have grown more powerful. Still, we let that old tether hold us back. We stop testing its strength and have resigned ourselves to always be held captive. We don’t want to experience the pain of the resistance and have convinced ourselves it’s easier to remain imprisoned than to fight against our restrictions.

Yes, the old chain may still hurt when you try to free yourself, but can it still stop you? You won’t know until you test them, or more accurately, test yourself. Even if the obstacles in your life haven’t gotten any smaller, it doesn’t mean they can still restrain you. Don’t let the chains of yesterday imprison today.

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