What Does It Mean to Wander but not be Lost?
5 Key Principles
Do you wander?
Why do you wander? Do you wander because you are lost? Or do you wander because you are exploring?
What does it mean to wander?
Not all those who wander are lost
observes Bilbo Baggins in The Lord of the Rings, talking about “Strider”, the Ranger who is Aragorn, true king of Gondor.
In a society and profession (education) that is obsessed with planning, pre-planning, and even post-planning, with collecting certain kinds of data, and with standardizing procedures, performance, and people, those who don’t “fit in” – who don’t conform to the dominant paradigm – often seem to wander and may be perceived as lost by those in the mainstream. At best, they are “lost in the crowd” or wandering on their own.
However, just as there was far more to Strider than met the eye, these “wandering” students and teachers often exhibit surprising depth, resourcefulness, and commitment, as well as vibrant curiosity and independence of spirit.
Wandering isn’t necessarily aimlessness. We (yes, I am a wandering teacher) can wander with purpose. We are unwilling to remain in the same place – either figuratively or literally. We refuse to do the same old things just because that’s what everyone else is doing or what we’ve always done.
What does it mean to wander without being lost?
It means being willing to walk The Road wherever it may take us. We make the journey with friends who go gladly with us or alone with our principles. At the same time, it means having a center – a philosophy, a guiding star – that keeps us grounded rather than being blown about with every wind or tossed to and fro by every current that happens along.
It’s a dangerous business, … going out of your door
As Frodo is leaving the Shire, he describes Bilbo’s view of The Road:
“He used often to say there was only one Road; that it was like a great river: its springs were at every doorstep, and every path was its tributary. ‘It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out of your door,’ he used to say. ‘You step onto the Road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to.’”
Bilbo meant that in a literal sense, but it is equally true in a figurative sense.
Of course, the opposite danger is also present: not going on the Road at all but staying in the same place because we are too timid or dull or distracted or whatever to dare to change, to explore, to “wander”.
How do we navigate our way between the Scylla of remaining stranded in one place only to die from stagnation and the Charybdis of being tossed about willy-nilly until dragged to our doom? By taking The Road, to be sure, but also by preparing ourselves beforehand so as not to be swept off our feet to who knows where.
Keep reading for 5 thoughts on keeping your feet while on The Road and wandering with purpose rather than merely being swept along.
Have a guiding principle
This can be a life principle or a professional philosophy as a subset of your life principles. It’s more and broader than a goal; in fact, it underlies the thinking that produces goals.
For example, I set many goals for myself and my students, e.g. read at least one article or book on teaching each week (myself); maintain focus on the classroom conversation for one entire class period (students); co-create a story in German that is interesting to students, incorporates their ideas, and uses high-frequency words often (myself and my students together).
Those goals are determined by my professional philosophy of teaching:
Because language acquisition is an unconscious process that is influenced by social interaction and other affective factors, I cannot teach language per se but must create an environment that facilitates acquisition of the language by giving learners opportunities to participate in genuine communication in the target language within a setting that supports engagement by all members of the group.
That philosophy is a subset of my life philosophy, which includes the belief that we humans were created in the image of God. This means that each individual – each student – is a spiritual, unique, moral, relational, rational, emotional, and creative being who has significance and worth.
It is this “North Star” of my professional philosophy that leads me to the approach, design, and applications that I use in my teaching. Without it I would wander aimlessly, trying one strategy after another, moving from method to method, and generally being swept along by popular acceptance of the latest educational fad or stuck in the mire of “We’ve always done it this way.”
Have a sense of purpose
The Rangers of the North in LOTR understand that their purpose includes protection of the innocent, peoples like the Hobbits. They wander from place to place in pursuit of that purpose, standing against whatever would harm those under their protection and moving to the point of attack. My purpose is not just to teach a content area (German, in my case), but to present the image of God to my students, edify and encourage them (and my colleagues), and then teach them German.
Have a sense of who you are
That sense changes over time. I certainly would not want to have the same sense of who I am now, at the end of my career, that I had in high school. At the same time, there is a core of being the same person, much as a waterfall is ever changing and yet always the same waterfall.
Far more in the books than in the movies, Aragorn understands who he is, Elendil’s heir. Yes, he has doubts. Yes, he needs to grow into his heritage. Yes, he must face his fears. But he knows that he is the heir of Isildur and acts accordingly. He takes the Paths of the Dead and confronts the Foresworn. He wields a palantír and risks himself in a confrontation with Sauron. He demonstrates that “the hands of the king are the hands of a healer”. He leads the allied armies to confront Sauron’s army at the Black Gate.
In one of the most poignant moments in the story, Galadriel is faced with a decision: accept the One Ring from Frodo and become the Queen whom all shall love – and despair – or refuse the Ring and watch all that she has kept safe for long ages wither and die. She expresses her choice as, “I will diminish, and go into the West, and remain Galadriel.” It is in part Galadriel’s sense of self, sense of who she truly is, that allows her to resist temptation and escape the danger of being swept away by forces mightier than she.
Have a sense of home while pursuing new things.
Wandering is often portrayed as negative. For example, Ezekiel uses the term to describe what had happened to Israel. They were like sheep wandering without a shepherd. We worry about people, especially children and the elderly, who “wander off” and fear for their safety.
In cases where wandering is negative, it’s usually because the wanderer has lost his sense of where “home” is. My cousin suffers from dementia and is prone to wandering. The danger is that because she has lost her sense of “home”, she won’t be able to find her way back.
Wandering often represents increased danger, such as when a child wanders off from her parents. People whose mind wanders may get “lost in thought” and do something dangerous without realizing it – such as not paying attention while driving.
However, when we know where home is, in both a literal and a figurative sense, wandering can bring delight, new insight, and even security. In Psalm 55:7, David yearns to wander like a bird to safety in the desert. (An interesting image, since the desert is usually viewed as a place of danger.) In Jeremiah 31:24, “those who wander with their flocks” is part of the description of safety and blessing. In Smith of Wootton Major, Smith Smithson wanders far and wide throughout the realm of Faery where he has many strange adventures, learns many new things, and meets enchanting people. He always finds his way home and is the better for his wandering. Many people love to wander through the fields and forests near their homes and consider their lives the better for it.
So, what’s the difference?
I think it is precisely this sense of home, this anchor of a sense of place, that allows us to wander both literally and figuratively without being swept away.
Be content while striving to excel.
What do you think contentment means?
Is it a lack of aspiration or intention? Does it mean not having a goal or striving to improve? Is it giving up and accepting the status quo as inevitable so that you don’t try to make the world or yourself better? Is it caving in to the extent that you are willing to accept whatever happens, whether it is just or not? Is it a sense of having enough for yourself and your family without working to help others?
While most of us accept the dictionary definition of contentment as “satisfaction with one’s possessions, status, or possessions” (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/contented), that can lead to a false understanding that the content person has, in a sense, “given up”.
Scripture reminds us that “godliness with contentment is great gain” (1 Timothy 6:6) and “if we have food and clothing, with that we shall be content” (1 Timothy 6:8). These words come from a man, the Apostle Paul, who wandered the Roman Empire sharing with others the Good News about Jesus. After travelling the eastern Mediterranean, he announced his plan to visit Rome on his way to Spain (cf. Romans 15:24, 28) as part of a vision to preach in places the Gospel had not yet penetrated. Obviously, his idea of “contentment” was not sitting down and doing nothing.
Perhaps the best comment on this is found in Hebrews 13:5: “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he [God] has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you’.” Contentment means focusing on fulfilling a life goal. It means being willing to do whatever it takes to accomplish that goal rather than fixating on material things, on personal peace and happiness.
Even in the world of business and entrepreneurship, the most effective entrepreneurs are the ones who aim for significance and define success in terms other than money.
What does all of this have to do with being an Intuitive Language Teacher?
Being an Intuitive Language Teacher means …
… having a philosophy of language teaching that integrates with your life philosophy;
… having a sense of purpose beyond just collecting a paycheck;
… having a sense of who you are as a teacher and a person;
… knowing and being where you belong while remaining open to new opportunities;
… being at peace where you are while seeking to excel in all you do.
Do you have a philosophy? A purpose? A sense of who you are? Knowledge of where you belong combined with openness to new things? Peace in your situation as you strive to excel?
If so, share with others. If not, set a goal of developing in these areas.
Join me in exploring these and other facets of intuitive language teaching. Subscribe to my newsletter for articles, thoughts, and updates on my own journey as an Intuitive Language Teacher.
I’ll see you on The Road.