The Short Route or the Long One
Patricia and Robert van Kooten 
Listening before choosing
There is a moment that comes before every true decision.
Not the moment of action. Not the moment of explanation. But the moment of listening.
It is quiet. Often subtle. And easy to overlook — especially in a world that rewards speed, certainty, and visible movement.
Yet this moment is everything.
Because before we choose a direction, before we change anything on the outside, something has already shifted on the inside.
.
When a calling appears
In a recent period, we found ourselves standing exactly here.
We had created something beautiful. A place, a rhythm, a life that carried safety, love, and devotion. And at the same time, a quiet calling began to return — not as urgency, not as pressure, but as a steady inner knowing.
It stirred both excitement and grief. Because listening honestly meant acknowledging that something was already changing inside us, even though the outside still looked stable.
A calling doesn’t arrive as a loud command. It rarely comes with a clear plan or a guaranteed outcome.
More often, it shows up as a gentle but persistent knowing. A sense that something wants your attention.
Sometimes this knowing brings excitement. Sometimes it brings fear, grief, or resistance. Often, it brings all of it at once.
Listening to your inner guide can make what you have built feel uncertain — not because it is wrong, but because it no longer fully contains who you are becoming.
This is where many people pause. And understandably so.
.
Safety and the illusion of place
As we listened more deeply, fear surfaced. Not dramatic fear — but the kind that whispers practical questions:
If this changes, where will we feel safe? If we let go, what will hold us?
During a moment of deep inner listening, a simple message came through with clarity:
Safety does not live in a place. Not in what we hold on to. But in the heart.
That insight shifted everything. Not because it forced a decision — but because it changed how we were listening.
We often associate safety with external structures: A home. A relationship. A role. A carefully built life.
But deep listening reveals something else.
True safety does not live in a place. It does not depend on what we hold on to.
Safety lives in the relationship we have with ourselves. In our ability to stay present with what we feel. In trusting that we can meet ourselves wherever life leads us.
When this realization lands, something softens. Not emptiness. But calm.
.
The long route
Looking back, we could see a familiar pattern.
In the past, we often stayed in places or situations until the tension built so high that leaving felt inevitable. The long route gave us reasons, justifications, and time — but it also came with emotional exhaustion.
There is nothing wrong with the long route. It can be nurturing. It can be wise.
But for us, it had often meant waiting until honesty arrived with a bang instead of a whisper.
The long route is familiar.
It gives us time. Time to adjust. Time to gather reasons. Time to make the unfamiliar feel manageable.
The long route isn’t wrong. It can be nurturing. It can be wise.
But sometimes, the long route becomes a way of postponing honesty. Of keeping options open even when, inside, the decision has already been made.
.
The short route
This time was different.
The calling arrived before breakdown. Before collapse. Before the emotional rollercoaster.
We realized that the short route is not about acting fast. It is about responding from presence.
The short route is precise. It begins the moment you allow yourself to admit what is already true — without needing everything to fall apart first.
For us, choosing the short route did not mean immediate action. It meant internal alignment.
The decision was made quietly. Movement could follow later.
The short route is often misunderstood.
It is not impulsive. It is not reckless. It is not rushed.
The short route is precise.
It begins the moment we stop pretending we are undecided. The moment we choose alignment over comfort. The moment we allow clarity to matter more than certainty.
Choosing the short route does not mean everything changes overnight. It simply means that internally, the choice is clear.
Movement will find its own timing.
.
Awareness comes first
This is why awareness is so essential.
Before action. Before explanation. Before commitment.
Awareness allows us to notice: Where we are already standing. What we are already choosing. And where we are still negotiating with ourselves.
Once awareness is present, it cannot be unseen. And it quietly reorganizes everything that follows.
.
A gentle reflection
Take a moment to feel into this — without answering it mentally:
Where in my life am I already living as if I haven’t decided, while deep down, I know I have?
Let the answer come from your body, not your thoughts.
.
A simple grounding practice
You can return to this at any moment:
• Place both feet on the floor
• Take one slow breath in
• Let your exhale be longer than your inhale
Then gently ask inside:
If I choose honesty over comfort, what feels true right now?
No reasoning needed. What you feel is information.
.
Walking your own timing
What this process taught us is that conscious choice does not demand urgency.
It asks for honesty. And honesty, once chosen, brings a surprising sense of ease — even when it points toward change.
We are still walking this path. With curiosity. With trust. And with respect for timing.
InnerSource Galicia was born in one chapter of our lives. It brought us back to our core. And it continues with us energetically, wherever the path unfolds next.
Every path has its rhythm.
Some choices ask for stillness first. Others ask for a clear step forward.
There is no universal pace. Only the pace that is honest for you.
And honesty, once chosen, tends to simplify life — even when it brings change.
.
A gentle invitation
If this theme resonates, let it walk with you for a while.
Notice where you pause. Notice where you already stand.
And if you feel called to explore conscious choice with support — not from pressure, but from alignment — you are warmly invited to explore our programs.
They are created for moments like this: When awareness is present. And clarity is ready to move.
Move at your own pace.
The right timing is part of the path.
—
P.S.
By sharing our own process, we hope to gently encourage you to listen to your own inner voice. Not to force change — but to notice what is already speaking inside you.
Sometimes, that listening alone is the beginning of everything.
Move at your own pace. The right timing is part of the path.
