How To Escape The "Mines of Moria"

No one ever accused me of being a movie buff, but I've watched Lord of the Rings Fellowship of the Ring 86 times. That's right, 86 times! Like millions of others, JRR Tolkien captured my imagination long before Peter Jackson and Wingnut films ever created their cinematic masterpieces.

Lord of the Rings (LotR) is not just any fantasy and Gandalf is not your average neighborhood wizard! There is tremendous depth and wisdom in LotR and many life lessons can be found just beneath the surface.

In one scene the members of the Fellowship, including the wizard Gandalf, were in the dark caverns deep inside the mountains of Moria, searching for a route to the other side. They came to a place where even the great wizard did not know which way to go.

From time to time we ALL come to a place in our lives when we simply don't know which way to turn. The road forward may not be clear at all. It can make us do what the Fellowship did; sit around and wonder what the next step should be. That scene struck me as being a very human moment- even though only one member of the Fellowship was human!

Suddenly, Gandalf perks up and announces, "Ah! It's that way!"

"He remembered!" Meri chimes in.

Gandalf replies, "No, but the air doesn't smell so foul down here. If in doubt, Meriadoc, always follow your nose."

The lesson in Gandalf's wise words points to something we all have but don't always use; intuition. More broadly, we could say that when our circumstances don't indicate a clear "best choice," we should trust what "doesn't smell so foul." This might be the direction your heart leads, your intuition, or even simply your own standards and personal values.

Let's close this post with another Gandalf quote; "Even the very wise cannot see all ends." Life is full of uncertainty, so if you've collected all the facts you can and the path forward is STILL not clear, "follow your nose!"