🔭 Wonderer’s Log #025: Expedition of the Body’s Boundaries - Arc of Deliberate Becoming - Odyssey of the Wild Truth
This is where my mind, heart, and action converge - footprints on a shared journey.
So that together we can explore and share what it means to live gently—with ourselves, our limits, and our becoming.
✨ Summary
This expedition didn’t go to plan—if anything, it defied it entirely. I caught a sickness that forced me into retreat just as I was stepping into what felt like a long-awaited rhythm. A week, gone. Poof. And with it, the illusion that I could finally get ahead. But something else happened too: amidst the fog and frustration, I still managed to show up for what mattered. I finalised important reporting. I onboarded new organisations. I kept connection alive in my home, even when lying in bed. This wasn’t a surge expedition—it was a survival one. But survival, I’ve learned, is sacred too.
📚 Read / Listened To
🎧 The Tim Ferriss Show
(#814) Chatri Sityodtong, CEO of ONE Championship — From Dirt Poor to Top-10 Sports-Media Franchise, The $100M Breakfast, Dominating Social Media (30B+ Views/Year), Key Strategic Decisions, and The Moneyball of Fight Matchmaking (Website or Spotify) - Finished
(#815) Chris Hutchins, Deal Master — Helping Tim Burn 15M+ Miles and Points, Flipping Costco Gold Into Five-Star Trips, Flying to Japan for $222, Tech Tools and Tricks, and Avoiding The Optimizer’s Curse (Website or Spotify) - Finished
📖 This is Strategy by Seth Godin (Amazon) - Still Reading
🗞️ Seth’s Blog - Seth Godin (Newsletter)
🗞️ 3-2-1 Thursday - James Clear (Newsletter)
🗞️ Brain Food - Shane Parris (Newsletter)
🗞️ PostHog Newsletter (Newsletter)
🗞️ Growth.Design Newsletter (Newsletter)
🧭 Reflections
🗂️ From the Project Manager's Desk
"Hi Team, it looks like the relentlessness of our pace has caught up with you. You’ve put in what you could this week, but the sickness that’s swept through us is a sign to look after ourselves. It’s my failure as management that this was the ultimate boundary—that you got sick.
Please take care of yourselves. You are incredibly important to everyone around you, and to me—not just as a tool of productivity, but as a person. Don’t let any pressure about what comes next cloud what needs to happen now for your own protection.
You are worth every moment of care you can muster.
💬 Advice from My Best Friend
“Hey mate, it seems like you might be a bit sick. After you’ve finished scoff-coughing your disapproving laughter, I have something for you. You are worth more than your roles. What I mean is that you need to look after your health first—without it, you can’t persist and be present in the world of those who care about you.
I know you’re probably really frustrated, and that makes heaps of sense—you’re a doer. But nevertheless, it’s incredibly important that you are cared for. Frustration is one thing, but don’t let it put you or others at risk in a way that would be deemed stupid. At the very least, save some face. If you need to take the time, take it. At the very least, you can frame it as needing all the strength you can get to get yourself back up to speed—and I do mean the very least.
Your life is not a tool for others. Look after yourself and your body. We’re all looking forward to the time we can spend with you—let’s make sure that time is time where you can smile, laugh, and be 100% yourself, unmarred by sickness. Now, go rest at 100%. You’re good at doing things 100%. Love you, dude.
”
🧓 Elder You Has Some Thoughts
⚠️ Worst Timeline Warning: “Young one, don’t become someone who only rests when forced. Your ambition is strong, but without rhythm, it will burn you hollow.” 🌟 Best Timeline Encouragement: “My stubborn child, your body’s slowdown is a sacred message. Listen to it. Love will wait. You’ll return stronger—and more yourself—than ever before.”
🧠 Narrative Affirmations
I am still worthy when I’m still.
I am someone who keeps showing up gently when I can’t show up grandly.
I am made not just for velocity, but for presence.
🌱 Expedition’s Wisdoms
Let Rest Rebuild, Not Just Pause - Rest isn’t the absence of progress—it’s the forge of resilience. When I treat recovery as part of my growth, I make space for depth over speed. Return to the Body Before the Task - When frustration rises, the wisest move is often inward. Honouring the body’s limits creates a foundation for sustainable effort and authentic presence. Anchor in Identity, Not Output - I am not what I produce. When I root my self-worth in who I am and how I love, rather than what I achieve, I become unshakeable—even in sickness. Measure Progress by Care, Not Completion - Some expeditions don’t end with checkmarks. They end with how well I loved, rested, and remained connected to myself and others. Let the Setback Start Something New - Each low point invites a decision: stagnate or start again. I choose to begin—not perfectly, but intentionally, as a version of myself newly aware.
🔍 Pattern Noticed: I've noticed a pattern that I only let myself pause when something forces it—illness, collapse, or burnout. And I treat those pauses as failures instead of invitations. It’s time to rewrite that.
💡 Questions I’m Sitting With:
What am I doing after the win that builds trust, ease, or clarity?
Am I choosing what’s important, or just responding to what’s loud?
Did I do something today that made my morning worth rising for and my night easier to rest in?
What job did I actually help get done—and did I design for that, or just decorate a process?
How did I honour my limits, and what did I learn from being slowed down?
🌗 Effort & Practice Reflections
🧍♂️ Personal & Pursuits & Presence
Welcomed a visiting friend during a brief recovery window.
Spent a meaningful, if quiet, day with my partner on their birthday.
Reconfirmed values alignment by not pushing through at all costs.
🟢 What I Navigated Well - I navigated my frustration with grace. I didn’t let the irritation of being slowed down turn into cruelty towards myself or others.
🟡 Where I Lost the Map (But Found Myself) - I lost my way when I believed I was behind. But in that pause, I realised this moment wasn’t a setback—it was sacred stillness, and I got to meet a softer version of myself there.
🔴 The Crash Site Report (With Kind Debrief) - I experienced a setback when I got sick just as momentum began. It felt unfair. But I’ve decided to let it be a reminder: my ambition isn’t my identity, and rest is still movement.
🏕️ Expedition’s Momentum
💛 Celebrated Effort | 🔵 Wholehearted Effort | 🟢 Gentle Effort | 💚 Deliberate Pause | 🔴 No Spark
| Effort | Category | Complete |
|---|
Not Aligned:
Take Action if Unsure – I hesitated to pivot early in the expedition and let frustration fester before accepting I needed to rest.
Self Rivalry – I compared myself harshly to a prior version who was “more productive,” instead of refining my understanding of growth through hardship.
Offering Love – I withheld grace from myself and treated my limits like a flaw rather than an invitation to soften.
Aligned
Seek Reflection – I leaned into the discomfort of stillness and used it as a prompt to examine the roots of my frustration and fear.
Respecting and Empathising – I showed up for others even when I couldn’t show up in my usual capacity, choosing presence over perfection.
Always Explore and Learn – I treated illness not as a dead-end but as a lesson—an insight into my rhythms, values, and boundaries.
⏩ Next Expedition’s Intentions
Start writing the next Learned Wisdom, even if only a paragraph.
Prep and publish the upcoming Thought Voyager piece.
Reclaim systems and KPIs to restore rhythm.
📡 Resonant Truths
"Progress isn’t always fast; sometimes, it’s just refusal to give up." - Wondering Chris
"Your life is not a tool for others. Look after yourself and your body." - Wondering Chris
"Sickness is a dry run. Think of it as your body’s mock test for death." - Wondering Chris
"Don’t spend your whole life ‘out there’ without balancing it with ‘in here’." - Wondering Chris
"Recovery isn't a pause; it's a beginning." - Wondering Chris
"Your life is not a tool for others. Look after yourself and your body." - Wondering Chris
Let’s hold this next breath lightly. Not because it’s easy, but because it’s ours.
Until next time,
Chris, the Wonderer
Next Thought Voyager:
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🌌 More Wonderings Beyond This Path – Curiosity Leads, Wonder Follows:
In the Same Vein – Keep Wondering
A New Trail to Wonder
