Today has been a bit of a fog, the kind of day when clarity feels just out of reach. I’ve been slowed down by a heavy allergy, making even simple thoughts feel like they are pushing through mud. But in going through my photo archives, I found this image, taken in Yunnan, China, and it felt like it mirrored something about today perfectly.
The photo shows a woman from the Hani tribe, walking away with what seems like an impossibly large load on her back. The Hani are known for their strength, and the name itself means “strong woman,” which feels so fitting when you look at her determined steps. It’s such a clear metaphor for what we all do, in one way or another—carrying what we need to survive, what we’ve gathered, what life hands us. Whether it’s physical, emotional, or mental, we each have a weight, some heavier than others, and we push on regardless.
What moves me most about this image is the quiet perseverance it captures. There’s no drama, no audience, no visible struggle. Just a woman, moving forward, step by step, on a dusty path under a vast sky. And isn’t that what so much of life is? Carrying on, even when the weight feels like too much, even when clarity is nowhere in sight.
Today reminded me of that. Even when my mind felt slow and the allergy blurred everything, there was still something steady and true in just showing up, in moving forward, in letting things be as they are.
Sometimes the weight feels overwhelming, but maybe it’s okay to pause and recognize that we are still walking, still making our way, one step at a time.
4 responses to “The Weight we Carry~”
Women carry heavy loads, whether material or not, all the time.
That image reminded me of the Kikuyu women in Kenya, many moons ago.
They carried tons of wood on their back, held by a head strap…
Yes they did the same in Yunnan . Amazing strength. Then there are the mental loads.
True. Caring for the family worrying about endless things…
“One step at a time” It’s so much more……