Peace starts the moment you stop running toward an ending that doesn’t exist.
Let this sink in for a moment: there is no such thing as a finish line.
We often live like we’re running a race we never signed up for — rushing to finish school, to graduate, to get the next job, the next promotion, the next version of ourselves that finally feels “enough.”
But the truth is: that finish line we keep chasing? It keeps moving. Every time we reach it, our mind quietly draws a new one — just a few meters ahead.
The Illusion of “After This”
You know that thought? “After this, everything will make sense. After this, I’ll finally feel calm.”
We’ve all been there. It’s that subtle promise our brain makes to keep us running — one more exam, one more goal, one more big step.
But here’s the thing: that moment of relief we imagine? It never really lasts. Because we are wired to grow, to move, to seek meaning. And if we don’t learn to find peace while we move — we’ll never find it at all.
Science actually backs this up. Psychologists call it the hedonic treadmill — the tendency of humans to quickly return to a stable level of happiness no matter what happens to us. We adapt to the “new normal.” The raise, the degree, the new apartment — it feels great, for a moment. Then, we start running again.
The Hidden Finish Line in Eating Disorders
There’s another place where the idea of a finish line shows up — in eating disorders. It’s the same illusion, just wearing a different mask. The next kilo. The next day with less food. The next smaller size. And then I’ll feel good. Then I’ll finally be enough.
But that moment never comes.
Because it’s not the next kilo that will make you happy — it’s just the belief that happiness lives somewhere in the „after“. Every time you reach one goal, another appears, whispering that you’re still not there yet. This becomes a cycle — a race that feeds on emptiness instead of healing it.
The truth is: it was never about food or numbers. It’s about the inability to feel what’s underneath — the pain, the fear, the deep need to be seen and loved. Real healing begins where the chase ends. When you allow yourself to stop running. To be honest, vulnerable, and say: I can’t fight anymore. I want to feel again. Because recovery isn’t about control — it’s about connection.
To your body. To your emotions. To life
Shifting the Perspective
What if we stopped seeing life as something to finish — and started seeing it as something to explore?
What if curiosity became our direction instead of achievement?
When we stay curious — like we’re still in school, even when we’re not — we start learning without pressure. We start growing for the sake of growth.
And suddenly, taking a gap year, trying a new hobby, or spending an afternoon doing something that has no clear professional purpose doesn’t feel like falling behind anymore.
It feels like living.
The Power of Staying Curious
Children are naturally curious. They learn by exploring, touching, failing, and asking why. Somewhere along the way, we trade that curiosity for performance.
But creativity and peace grow in the same soil as curiosity. When you allow yourself to explore something just because you want to — no expectations, no audience — you connect to something deeply human.
Curiosity doesn’t demand results. It opens doors.
Growth Without a Race
Life is not a ladder. It’s more like a spiral. You circle back to similar lessons, meet familiar fears, and grow each time you return — just from a higher perspective.
So, let’s stop rushing to “finish.” There’s nothing to finish. Only moments to live.
And every time you slow down — to reflect, to feel, to breathe — you’re not falling behind. You’re arriving.
Soooo…
There is no finish line. Only movement. Only learning. Only the quiet, steady rhythm of growth that continues long after the applause fades.
Let this sink in.
Let it soften the pressure.
And let it remind you that you’re already on the way — not to a finish, but to yourself.
Katja, Creator of Homeless🌿
