Mile 838.8/1000
What is good, my friends?
Out on my 1000 Mile Walk with God today.
And I want to share a term I learned recently that has really stuck with me.
Now, for my military friends out there, feel free to lovingly correct me if I'm getting this slightly wrong. I'm just a guy walking through the neighborhood trying to learn words. 😄
The word is defilade.
As I understand it, in a military setting, defilade refers to being protected from enemy fire by being down in a trench, foxhole, or behind some kind of cover.
Which is good, because you're protected.
But there's also a challenge.
When you're down in the trench, your perspective is limited. You can only see what's right in front of you. You may be safe in some ways, but you can't see the whole battlefield.
And that idea has been on my mind a lot.
Because there are times in business, faith, family, and life where we can end up in what one of my business mentors called full defilade.
You're down in it and all you can see is the mess right in front of you.
The problem, stress, disappointment, uncertainty. The things that all feel like it's not working.
And when that's all you can see, it can start to feel like that's all there is.
But it's not.
There is more happening than what we can see from the trench.
I was reminded of this recently when my son Ben and I went to a local cold plunge and sauna place together.
Which, by the way, is a very strange bonding activity.
Nothing says father-son connection quite like voluntarily freezing yourself and then sitting in a hot room wondering why you make life choices like this. 😄
While we were there, we met a man who seemed like he was in a really hard place.
He was going through a divorce and dealing with financial stress.
This guy was carrying a lot.
And as he talked, his perspective was heavy.
Not because he was a bad person.
Not because he didn't have faith.
But because, from what he shared, it sounded like he was down in the trench.
He could only see what was right in front of him.
Afterward, Ben said something that really stood out to me.
He said:
"He seems like a nice guy. His perspective is just really rough right now."
And I thought that was exactly right.
People don't need us to judge them. They need us to remember that they may not be able to see very far right now.
And sometimes that person is us.
Sometimes we are the ones in full defilade.
All we can see is the problem.
All we can feel is the pressure.
All we can imagine is just more of the same.
And that's when we need people in our lives who can see more than we can.
People who can say:
"Hey, there's another way through this."
"Hey, you're not as stuck as you think."
"Hey, I know this is hard, but this isn't the whole story."
And more than anything, we need God.
Because God can always see more than we can.
He sees around corners, beyond the trench, and most importantly, He sees the whole battlefield when our view is blocked by the dirt wall right in front of our face.
That's one reason I'm grateful for prophets, scriptures, promptings, wise friends, good counselors, and people who love us enough to help us see differently.
Not people who dismiss what we're going through or just say, "It's fine," when it doesn't feel fine.
But people who can stand somewhere with a wider view and help guide us with faith.
So my little thought from today's walk is this:
If you're in the trench right now, don't assume the trench is the whole world.
Reach out.
Pray.
Listen.
Let God help you see more.
And surround yourself with good people who can remind you that there is a bigger picture than the one you can see right now.
Thanks for being part of this little B.O.M.Socks community. I'm grateful we get to walk through faith, family, scripture, humor, limited perspective, good counsel, and real life together.
Godspeed!
Derek Crimin
B.O.M.Socks CEO and Excellent Sock Model