Most of us have played with a catapult or slingshot when we were younger. The fun of loading it, stretching it backward, taking aim, and trying to hit the target was a game filled with fun. Interestingly, the principle of the catapult can be very useful to us as we navigate life.

In a catapult, we need to pull the band backward before we can launch the stone forward. In life too, sometimes we need to take a step back and reassess the situation before moving ahead. When circumstances force us to slow down and sometimes we feel we have moved back rather than moving ahead, it will serve us well to remind ourselves that what looks like a problem could well be the opportunity we needed to launch into something bigger and better.

The more we stretch the band, the greater the effectiveness of the catapult. So too with us in life. When we find the inner ability to stretch ourselves to the maximum, we are most effective. Often when we are overcome with our responsibilities and challenges of life and feel stretched, it will serve us well to remind ourselves that this is life’s way of launching us into a better future.

The effectiveness of the catapult lies in our ability to have a clear target, take aim and concentrate on the object to be hit. The effectiveness of our life lies in our ability to have an inspiring purpose and dedicate our actions in a focussed manner.

A catapult is held steady with one hand and stretched with the other. We too need to steady ourselves within, to be able to stretch ourselves in the outer world. A wavering and agitated mind is like a shaky hand holding a catapult; we will constantly keep missing the target.

A catapult needs to be loaded with a stone that will hit the target. Without that, using the catapult is meaningless. Our actions in life need to be loaded with enthusiasm and dedication. Mindless actions without inspiration and enthusiasm will leave us with an inner void.

There are times we are compelled to halt our progress and take a step back. Life is not being unfair; it may well be helping us move to a better future by teaching us to become a catapult.

(Picture-Our garden in the winter)