A Quote from Plotkin

buffalo path through the reeds

"The Wanderer (of any chronological age) seeks to discover her ultimate place in life. Not just any place will do. Her authentic place is not simply one that someone will pay her to occupy, such as a job. Nor is it a task she happens to have the talent to perform, such as an art or a craft, of a career that a vocational counselor recommends for her, such as banking or social work. Nor is it a social role, such as caregiver, student, parent, servant, leader, whore, or rebel, which other people will accept her in. It's got to be her place, one that is in keeping with her vital core. It's a place defined not by the deeds she performs but by the qualities of soul that she embodies; not by her physical, social, or economic achievements but by the true character she manifests; neither by her capacity to conform to the masses, nor by her ability to creatively rebel against the mainstream, but by the unique way she performs her giveaway for her community. Her ultimate place is identified not by any social forms or roles but, rather, by the symbols, stories, and archetypes unearthed from the deep structure of her psyche and by the way the world invites her to belong to it." Bill Plotkin, Nature and the Human Soul; pg. 252