The Knight in Rusty Armor is a brilliant, brief allegory about a heroic knight in shining armor who loses his sense of self and forgets his way in life. The knight struggles to remove his armor and regain his identity, thereby restoring his relationship with his loved ones.
Life is fraught with difficulties. In the midst of facing something difficult or challenging, a knight feels compelled to act a certain way. He dons a suit of armor to protect himself and in the process obscures or covers up his true self. Once donned, his armor is difficult if not impossible to remove. His sense of self becomes tied up in how he has acted in the past and how he believes he must act in the future. He thinks only of doing, instead of being. He neglects the important things in his life in a foolish and futile quest to impress others. He fights against his true nature, to become something he’s not. Little does he realize that everyone around him is fighting the same battle, and that no one really pays attention to him.
The knight endures a long and painful struggle to finally admit that everything he knows is wrong. His sense of self is skewed, his beliefs about true and false are upside down, and his definitions of good and bad are unnecessary. He learns to see himself without judgment or excuse and begins to take full responsibility. He has created his world and is the cause of his fate and his condition, rather than an effect. He is in control, when he relinquishes fear. He embraces love of himself and love of everything in his life, animate or inanimate. He embraces life in all its splendor, regardless of appearance, and experiences boundless joy. His inner goodness is revealed and his false, put-upon armor shell dissipates. He is free.
Free yourself from false expectation. Forget about being a part of the crowd. Remember to be yourself and be your best. Leave the armor to the weak and to the fake - you are strong enough without it.
From September 2010, http://raising-a-man.tumblr.com
Life is fraught with difficulties. In the midst of facing something difficult or challenging, a knight feels compelled to act a certain way. He dons a suit of armor to protect himself and in the process obscures or covers up his true self. Once donned, his armor is difficult if not impossible to remove. His sense of self becomes tied up in how he has acted in the past and how he believes he must act in the future. He thinks only of doing, instead of being. He neglects the important things in his life in a foolish and futile quest to impress others. He fights against his true nature, to become something he’s not. Little does he realize that everyone around him is fighting the same battle, and that no one really pays attention to him.
The knight endures a long and painful struggle to finally admit that everything he knows is wrong. His sense of self is skewed, his beliefs about true and false are upside down, and his definitions of good and bad are unnecessary. He learns to see himself without judgment or excuse and begins to take full responsibility. He has created his world and is the cause of his fate and his condition, rather than an effect. He is in control, when he relinquishes fear. He embraces love of himself and love of everything in his life, animate or inanimate. He embraces life in all its splendor, regardless of appearance, and experiences boundless joy. His inner goodness is revealed and his false, put-upon armor shell dissipates. He is free.
Free yourself from false expectation. Forget about being a part of the crowd. Remember to be yourself and be your best. Leave the armor to the weak and to the fake - you are strong enough without it.
From September 2010, http://raising-a-man.tumblr.com
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