The Weight of Unhealed Wounds: Why You Keep Reliving the Same Patterns
How Past Trauma Shapes Unconscious Habits & The Path to Freedom
The Glass Shard in Your Foot
A young traveler walked through a village barefoot. One day, she stepped on a small, sharp piece of glass. The pain was intense, but instead of removing it, she ignored it and kept walking.
Over time, the wound hardened. She adjusted her step to avoid pressing on the sore spot. Eventually, she barely noticed it—except when someone stepped too close, or when she tried to run and stumbled. The wound, though small, changed how she moved through life.
Years later, an elder noticed her uneven gait and asked, “Why do you walk like that?”
She shrugged. “I guess that’s just how I walk.”
The elder smiled gently. “Or perhaps you are still protecting an old wound.”
Curious, she finally sat down and examined her foot. To her shock, the glass was still there. It had been there all along, shaping her movements, her limitations, her pain.
With effort, she pulled it out. The wound bled, but now, at last, it could heal.