Looking for the thread

At the end of Mrinank Sharma's resignation letter from Anthtropic, he shared a poem by William Stafford: "The Way It Is."

There's a thread you follow. It goes among
things that change. But it doesn't change.
People wonder about what you are pursuing.
You have to explain about the thread.
But it is hard for others to see.
While you hold it you can't get lost.
Tragedies happen; people get hurt
or die; and you suffer and get old.
Nothing you do can stop time's unfolding.
You don't ever let go of the thread.

I had never read this poem before, but it is beautiful. Sharma's sharing of this poem in context of him leaving his position is a powerful picture. He's holding onto something that outlasts a highly-coveted position at a tech company, or even the critiques from others about his decision. I respect that.

I am reminded of the story of The Princess and the Goblin by George MacDonald. One day, Princess Irene wakes up to find a thread underneath her pillow. She begins to follow it, and it leads her to some unexpected places: out of the safety of the castle in which she lives, up a mountainside, and even into a dark and eery cave. She believes the thread was placed there by someone she knows and trusts, and so follows the thread with the confidence of a child holding the strong hand of her father. (You'll have to read the story to find out what happens next...)

I have felt that way before, as if I had a hold of the thread pretty well. At other times in my life, as in recent days, it feels like I let it go, or it had just gone out of reach, disappearing like a vapor from my hands. How do I make sense of all the twists and turns in my life up to this point? What is the picture this thread I thought I was following bringing together? I sometimes feel I am still looking for the thread.

But… there is always this undying sliver of hope inside of me, as if the thread has always been with me, holding my heart together, holding my whole life together. Maybe this thread has never truly disappeared. Maybe "the thread" is actually holding on to me.