Henry David Thoreau, a three-hour, three-part documentary produced by Ken Burns and Don Henley, premiers on PBS on March 30th and 31st, 2026. The documentary is the first nationally broadcast biography of this American original at a time when his wisdom is sorely needed. One of his many universal themes explored are his writings on living an authentic life. I can’t wait to watch this masterpiece!
Recently, during a stay at my mom’s, I pulled out some old photo albums. I wanted to go back and search for those childhood pictures that represented the authenticity of who I was “way back then.” The featured image of me at the grill captured my essence. The photo got me thinking of my own uniqueness and caused me to ponder these questions, “Have I lost some of my ‘one-of-a-kind’ nature along the journey of my life, and if so, how do I reclaim it? Or, has it stayed with me deep in my core?”
As I usually do, I turn to Thoreau for his wisdom. This prompted me to share an excerpt on authenticity from my book, Paddlin’ with Thoreau….
“I desire that there may be as many different persons in the world as possible; but I would have each one be very careful to find out and pursue his own way, and not his father’s or his mother’s or his neighbors instead…We may not arrive at our port within a calculable period, but we would preserve the true course.”
-Henry David Thoreau, Walden, Economy
Thoreau writes this opening quote after a conversation with a youth who inherited acreage and wanted to live as he did at Walden Pond. Thoreau’s response is, “I would not have any one adopt my mode of living on any account.”He is adamant about each person pursuing his own path and making his living in his own way.
The photo for this essay is a meandering river holding its course, winter’s last sprinkling of snow gracing its banks. A river is a wonderful metaphor for my thoughts on authenticity.
A quote from A Course in Miracles reads, “How could I recognize my own best interests if I don’t know who I am?” This question illustrates the essence of Henry’s thoughts on preserving our own course. How do we know where we are going, if we don’t know who we are?
So how do we uncover who we are at our most submerged level? The critical starting point to defining our course is to clarify and live according to our deeply held values. A business colleague of mine once said, “When your values are clear, the decisions are easy.”
Like the river, pulled by gravity as it flows, we are pulled in many directions by life’s circumstances, people, and stuff we “should” do. We preserve our course by staying in alignment with our values.
So often I think about mine as I paddle around the bends of a winding river. I prioritize these guideposts in the order of BE, DO, HAVE, a process I learned from another business colleague of mine. Who do I want to BE, in order to DO the things that are important to me, to HAVE a fulfilling life? BE always comes first. I hope this helps you find a process that works for you to discover and preserve your own true course.
Come ride along with me as I share my inherent values.
LOVE – of myself, others and life. BE open to the truths that emerge from deep love of self. DO my very best to be a loving person in all circumstances. HAVE a loving and truthful heart and soul.
PEACE OF MIND AND HEART – in the spirituality of nature. BE aware of deeper truths every day. DO live a deeply spiritual life so my heartbeat matches the heartbeat of the universe. HAVE my nature match nature.
HEALTH – clean and balanced eating; consistent exercise. BE in excellent health on all levels. DO a monthly evaluation of all four pillars – spiritual, emotional, physical, financial. HAVE a healthy regimen I can maintain.
SIMPLICITY – clear out inner and outer clutter. BE very diligent about keeping my life open and simple. DO continue to clear out the unnecessary. HAVE clarity and mindfulness.
MEANINGFUL PURPOSE – what do I exchange my life energy for? What has MEANING? BE the truth I want to see in the world. DO create the uncreated. HAVE willingness to do something with no guarantees.
JOY – what do I do for FUN? BE joyful and truthful. DO live as my heart is calling me to live. HAVE new and exciting adventures.
LEGACY – 100 years from now, how will people remember me? BE a writer. DO consistent plan for weekly writing. HAVE fulfillment and sustainability in building my life as a writer.
It has taken me a long time to identify the elements of BE, DO, HAVE that accompany my values. Am I 100% consistent in following these daily? Realistically, NO. But I write them down each year in my journal and refer to them often. They serve as guideposts to my authenticity, my true course.
Being mindful of my values also helps me set boundaries. Just like the river banks keep the water flowing in the direction that is true for the water, I too need boundaries to keep my life’s flow on course.
Most of us spend more time planning a vacation or a party or a major life event than clarifying our values. But isn’t the course of our life, living true to who we are, more important than anything? Identifying our values and knowing our purpose fuels our passion for life – beyond money and material wealth – and gives our lives meaning. How do we want to be remembered? Sometimes it is helpful to start this process from the end. What is our epitaph?
As I paddle on rivers, I observe how easily they flow, following their course. At a basic level, every river will BE uniquely shaped by elements, terrain and gravity; its dynamic water movement will DO what naturally occurs; and the river will HAVE a steady flow.
Unhappiness stems from actions inconsistent with who we are. I wish you the time and space to clarify your values to live your life from your authentic center. It is the most important thing you can do. Perhaps I’ll start up my lemonade stand again.
Be like the river. Preserve your own true course.
And don’t forget to tune in to Henry at the end of this month!!!
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Before you continue, jot down five values that quickly come to mind.
How will you use these values to preserve your own true course?
Set a simple plan of action and get going. Right now.
