This week’s Prompt For The Promptless is about Wu Wei:

Wu wei, or non-doing, is a Taoist practice involving letting one’s action follow the simple and spontaneous course of nature rather than interfering with the harmonious working of universal law by imposing arbitrary and artificial forms.  In other words, it is the action of non-action.

Huh. Who would have guessed that my life has just been a Taoist practice? I have been a wandering Taoist fish my whole life and I didn’t even know it.

My entire life has been spent like a leaf on a river; drifting along with the currents, sometimes getting tangled on the shore, but always eventually ripping away to some other unknown direction. Sometimes, I hit rapids; other times, the water is smooth with no perceptible movement, but It is always moving whether you can see it or not.

Unless you want to be a penniless traveling Monk or a tree, Wu Wei is a nice concept that doesn’t really get you anywhere in life. Sure, you will see a lot of things that some more intentional leaves won’t see, but experience is overrated. I’d do just about anything to rid my memory of some experiences. Experience doesn’t pay.

Lately I’ve been thinking about stepping off the path of non-action into action. Non-action isn’t really all it’s cracked up to be. Sure, allowing things to take their natural course is great for trees, rivers and even architecture, but for humans who live in a modern society, not so much.

I don’t want to float down the river of life anymore. I’m tired of the currents. I’m tired of temporary. I want to choose. I’m tired of never knowing where I will be taken next. I want a home of my own with roots and a shotgun so I can say “get off my lawn” with authority.

So, to those of you who may think Wu Wei is where it’s at, I’m here to tell you that drifting around with no reason or intent other than “the harmonious working of universal law” ain’t all that. Unless you are a river, going with the flow is no way to go through life, son. Set your course.