Metaphorically Speaking – Portaging (a new word for me)

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I had never heard this word until my book club read “Orphan Train” by Christina Baker Kline. In one of the chapters, one of the main characters, Molly, is learning about the Wabanaki Indians. This tribe often had to migrate across water in canoes. Travelling across the water was doable, but once they reached the shore, they had to carry the canoes, so the additional items they brought with them had to be manageable. They simply could not take everything with them when they moved so they had to determine what was important to bring in the canoe and what they needed to leave behind.

We have all had to (metaphorically) portage – it is just the way life goes – and we have to decide what is important to keep and what is important to let go. Portaging can occur when we leave or enter into relationships with others. Portaging can occur when we make a move to a new home or new job. Portaging can occur during a renewed spiritual journey or the struggle with maintaining faith. Portaging is whatever we decide to take with us and what we decide to leave behind when we encounter transition times of our lives and can have a profound effect on the quality of our life.

I have had several significant times in my life, where portaging has been necessary ~ although I did not realize this is what I was doing. Through much trial and error, I began to realize I had to weed out the emotions and/or circumstance that could weigh me down making it difficult to move forward or…. from completely sinking. Determining what to put in the “canoe” differed with each journey/transition. I wound up discovering, however, there are three common things I always carry in my canoe:

  1. Support: In order for me to progress I need to put my ego aside and ask for help. I thankfully receive a lot of love and support from my family and my circle of friends during these times. The various moves from one state to another, the new babies that grew into the challenging teenager years, the ups and downs of marriage, divorce, and death of loved ones become a lighter load when I ask for help.
  2. I had to decide if these transitions were going to make or break me: When I was newlywed my husband and I moved 800 miles away to southeast Texas. During two full days of driving two separate cars – one of them towing a trailer with everything we owned – we headed towards a destination I knew nothing about. While driving alone, all I could think about was leaving my close family ties and friendships – it was very daunting to say the least. Once we settled, I could have very easily given into my feelings of loneliness. I chose to make the best of it and forced myself to step out of my comfort zone. Eventually I wound up attaining a Bachelor of Science in education at the nearby university and got involved with a women’s club where I met and made some terrific life-long friends. We eventually wound up moving back to our home state after spending ten years in Texas – with intermittent short-term transfers to Baton Rouge, LA and Niantic, CT.  I can say with confidence I returned a better person than when I left. I did some much-needed growing up, made life-long friends, and created some incredible memories.
  3. Faith: I relied on my faith and the power of prayer to guide and help me through these transitions. I will share that there was a time during one of these transitions when I was extremely frustrated, worried, and felt so helpless. It seemed as if God was too busy to hear my prayer, so I became frustrated and discouraged and decided to step away from my prayer life. Please understand, I never lost my faith; I just had to step away for a while until I could make sense of it all. The thing is, I never have made sense of that situation and I never fully understood the how and why of that transition; but I eventually came to realize ~ through the grace of God ~ how much that particular transition provided a positive influence in my tolerance of others, empathy for those struggling, and a surprisingly deeper faith.  In times of joy and sorrow I still rely heavily on my faith and although it is number three in this post, it is and will always be the number one thing I put in my canoe.

As the new chapters of my life unfold, I am certain there will be more canoes to carry. I am grateful that I have, so far, arrived at each destination with more courage, resilience, and compassion than I ever thought I could.

As I look toward the unknowns of the future, asking for help, deciding on whether I will allow this transition to make or break me, and relying on my faith will always go into my canoe.

What do you include in your canoe?

Checkout Weekend Coffee Share by clicking on this link: https://natalietheexplorer.home.blog/2022/07/22/5-notable-lighthouses-in-newfoundland/

35 thoughts on “Metaphorically Speaking – Portaging (a new word for me)”

  1. This is a completely new word to me…which, by itself, I love because I just love words! But a wonderful thought to ponder. Such a necessary process. One I have done more often than I thought because I didn’t realize it at the time….but how helpful to do some purposeful portaging as well – especially in this new decade of life for me!! Thanks for much to consider –

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  2. There is too much to process to answer your question in a few words. I would need an article at least as long as yours to provide a summary I was happy with. I like to think I capture some of your ideas in my ‘I Recall’ essays, but they blend in my idea of entertainment for my readers which distracts from a clear answer.
    Great article – it will have us thinking for some time.
    Thanks for that.

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  4. Thank you for bringing some light to a new word. I believe I’ve heard the term before, but never really thought about it in a deeper context. As someone already said, moving is a natural portage. I’ve move many times in my life, travelled and lived in different countries. What I always bring with me in my canoe is; my love for my children, learning new things, teaching, books, gardening, and an awe of surrounding nature. Thank you for this thought provoking and most interesting post.

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  7. Portaging is something I’d not heard of before but it makes complete sense now that you explain it. Very interesting and thought provoking for #weekendcoffeeshare

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  8. Thank you for your weekend coffee share and thought-provoking post. I knew the word portaging from my canoeing in Canada. Over the years, I’ve been curating. I’m happy with what’s in my canoe and am enjoying my journey atm.

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  9. This is an interesting read and you have offered much food for thought. I read the book but I had forgotten the term portaging. It makes perfect sense in context though. My husband and I have packed our canoe a few times over our 34 years of marriage and we have purged a lot of baggage while holding onto only what truly matters. This past year has been the most interesting time and our present journey requires patience and an open mind. The canoe continues to shrink but we are still paddling in the right direction.

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  10. What a great post. I’d not heard of that word but I want to think about this more. I like the concept you discuss here….indeed, what’s in my canoe? #WeekendCoffeeShare

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    • Thank you for your kind words. When I first read the word in the book, (mentioned in my post) it was a school assignment for the main character. I decided to make it one of mine and gave it some deep thought. I found it to be a very good exploration and exercise of my inner self. I hope you can do this too!

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  11. Great post! I was familiar with the term portaging from Canadian history in grade school – the fur traders travelling along the inland rivers would have to portage for miles. I don’t know what would go in my canoe but I see portaging in my near future.

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  13. Your statement of faith is awesome.

    I knew about portage, because I was the canoe instructor for a Girl Scott camp one summer during college.

    The day after our wedding, John and I began driving 1,200 miles to NY. We lived there 50 years.

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  14. Over the years I’ve had a lot of major transitions. I’ve had to let go of toxic people. I also became self-reliant. I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and that was a good thing. We’ve downsized our home and I learned that moving is a natural portage. Some neighbors, who I thought were friends, turned out to be “friends for a season.” Useful at the time but only when it didn’t require any “work” for them. Like you, each transition leaves you smarter and more agile to adapt.

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