Preparation for the Jorney

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She toiled hard to prepare herself,
Read voraciously, studied all she could find,
Sought advice of masters who might know,
Absorbed what words of wisdom she could comprehend…

Determined she was, laggard she would not be,
when her journey commenced.

She practised hard, prepared her own way,
For she knew not the established style.
Her practice was steadfast…sincere, from-the-heart,

And the determination was very strong; laggard she would not be,
when her journey commenced.

At first it was about things without - the tangible things,
Later it was more within…introspection and circumspection;
When vanity came in her way, she shed all conceit,
Then went her pompousness, then her pettiness…

For determined she was, that when her journey commenced,
Laggard she would not be…

And finally the day arrived when she felt,
Felt an awareness arising from deep within,
She was now prepared…prepared to commence the journey.

And then, abruptly, all of a sudden, a new realization dawned,
It astonished her at first, she struggled with the thought,
This just didn't make sense!
But slowly, very slowly she understood...

The preparation itself was her journey.

Nice quote

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"The efforts of most human-beings are consumed in the struggle for their daily bread, but most of those who are, either through fortune or some special gift, relieved of this struggle are largely absorbed in further improving their worldly lot. Beneath the effort directed toward the accumulation of worldly goods lies all too frequently the illusion that this is the most substantial and desirable end to be achieved; but there is, fortunately, a minority composed of those who recognize early in their lives that the most beautiful and satisfying experiences open to humankind are not derived from the outside, but are bound up with the development of the individual's own feeling, thinking and acting. The genuine artists, investigators and thinkers have always been persons of this kind. However inconspicuously the life of these individuals runs its course, none the less the fruits of their endeavors are the most valuable contributions which one generation can make to its successors."

- Albert Einstein, in obituary for Emmy Noether, NY times, May 05, 1935