Men stumble over pebbles, never over mountains.
— Emilie Cady
Lately I have been thinking a lot about the little things in my life. Little things that have good effects and little things that have bad effects. As I have been thinking on this, I have come to believe the statement above even more deeply. When I have struggled in life, it has always been over pebbles and not over mountains.
Mountains are big obstacles. They can appear impossible to overcome. Yet, often when we come to a mountain, we find a way over or around it.
Small problems are a different kind of challenge. Just like holding a small pebble close to you eye makes it look enormous, we all become overly focused on a tiny issues they can become insurmountable mountains that halt our progress.
To overcome these small obstacles, we need to take a step back and view them with more perspective — and we have the power to do this. When we climb over a mountain, we step over dozens of pebbles with each step. We are able to do this because we are focused on the mountain and not on the pebbles. It is only when we lose sight of the mountain and over-examine the pebbles that they get in the way.
What pebbles are currently blocking your path? How can you view them with better perspective? What are the mountains you could climb if you weren’t letting pebbles get in the way?