We usually assume that we are in the present, looking forward to the future, with the past behind us. But this whakataukī suggests the opposite, and seems to be more supported by evidence:
Ka mua, ka muri
We’re actually facing the other way - looking to the past for guidance, but walking backwards into the future.
This is why it’s so hard to imagine what’s coming next - it’s behind us!
This is why we shouldn’t be surprised when we occasionally stumble on unexpected obstacles - we’re not looking where we are going!
Of course we’re scared. We remember the past and recall all the times we were wrong previously, and we anticipate an uncertain future no doubt waiting with some entirely new ways for us to be wrong too.
But we don’t need to worry about being wrong as long as we’re choosing good things to be wrong about. We can remind ourselves that we just can’t know until we try. Then we can make a plan to prove to ourselves that we can do those things, or learn that we can’t. Either of those outcomes is better than not knowing. We just need to be honest about our results.
We need to remember how everything grows: first we do it once, then we do it again, then we do it multiple times. The progress we can make just by taking one step at a time is phenomenal, provided we start soon enough and keep going at a pace we can sustain without having to rush. It’s the only good way to walk backwards!
