There’s a warden in your head—and he’s the past.
You hired him. You keep him on the payroll.
He’s an ever-present voice, dragging out every failure, highlighting where you missed the mark, and promising more of the same ahead. His job? To punish and embarrass you any time you step out of line. Any time you daydream about freedom. When your thoughts stray from the well-worn path of culture. When your rebellious opinions drift too far from the mind-numbing, profit-producing consensus. When your desires don’t align with what earns you status or a shot at an IPO.
Just when peace and clarity begin to settle in, he cracks the whip.
And suddenly, you’re back in the cell.
But here’s the good news: you can fire Warden Past. Anytime.
The key to your cell is in your hand.
You unlock the door by moving in the exact directions he warns against. You walk out and step into a new life. You live somewhere new: in the astonishing, gifted present. In doing so, you step into something solid and unchangeable: the truth.
There is no need to fear the truth. It’s all there ever is.
The truth about who you are.
The truth about what you need.
You can unlearn pain as a way of life. Happiness isn’t a privilege reserved for someone else. It’s not a trick. It’s not a bait and switch. It’s a skill you can learn. You can know peace. You can understand that God is your source, and His desire is for you to live in the fullness of His kingdom, not in the shallow, dirty waters of fear, scarcity, and the hollow cravings of ego.
You can learn to trust the love the world offers you.
You can feel safe in God’s covenant with you.
You can accept that God is not waiting to pull the rug out from under you.
He is the rug.
The foundation.
He is steady. He is secure.
And so are you.
Enjoying your life is safe.
You don’t have to be miserable.
Misery is not loyalty.
Being happy and healthy isn’t a betrayal of your past self. It means you remember who you are and who God is.
Your security doesn’t come from approval.
It doesn’t come from staying small or being anxious to keep people comfortable.
Your security comes from your Higher Power.
From your commitment to listening for and acting on God’s voice.
Peace isn’t a trick that disappears when you reach for it.
It’s your birthright.
It’s the life God always had in mind for you, made crystal clear by the desires He planted in your heart.
Quote: So awake to the power that you are not as man, but as your true self — a faceless, formless awareness; and free yourself from your self imposed prison. Neville Goddard
Song Accompaniment: Same Old Song, The Lumineers
Artwork: The Art of Seth
2025 Accompaniments Playlist – Apple Music
2025 Accompaniments Playlist – Spotify
Read next:
https://www.michellepage.blog/what-love-acts-like-lessons-from-foster-care/