A Short Rumination on Discipline

When I hear the word discipline, I think of my elementary school’s vice principal, chanting her rules in catchy phrases, striding down the halls, towering over the children. I think of straight-backed, blinders-on, marching stiffly forward, adhering perfectly to the regulations set out, blending in, everyone strictly the same.

Then I see the word: there is a disciple in discipline. Many people will recognize this word from religion: Jesus’ disciples. A disciple is one who follows. If we are disciplined, we are following the rules. We don’t stand out of the crowd. We all march to the same beat, same drummer, one army, all soldiers headed in the same direction, so we all are alike. But is that possible? We aren’t all alike. Can a law cover everyone? Can rules be written without exceptions? Can we all be expected to stiffly walk through life with blinders on, treated the same, when the world hasn’t dealt us equal hands with which to navigate our journeys? We can certainly try, but is that fair? Is that equal?

Discipline can be universal, but it can be personal, too. I depend on my routines to keep me stable and healthy. The more I stick to a scheduled plan, the better I feel. But that takes discipline — to wake and prepare and go to work, to exercise regularly, to clean my house, to care for my children and pets, to pay my bills, to take my medication, to write every week, to reach out, to go to my meetings, to get my sleep.

Discipline is dedication, and creates reliability, reassurance, and boundaries. But it also can hinder creativity and spontaneity, limit a sense of adventure, create fences where a feeling of openness would be more beneficial. Being too rigid doesn’t allow for the diversity and transitions we may experience in our lives. We need rules and routines to follow to create order and dependability, the ability to predict next steps bringing peace to our lives, but we need to be flexible enough to adjust when these rules and routines don’t quite fit a certain situation, when circumstances change, or when life hands us a new opportunity. Like Tanya Tucker once sang, we need to be strong enough to bend.

After all, who knows what excitement is waiting around the corner? Until then, I’ll keep doing what I do, one foot in front of the other — a disciple to my own observations.

9–6–22

Tansy Julie Soaring Eagle Paschold