The snake in the bamboo

There is an old story about a snake who, while gliding its way through the forest, comes upon a long bamboo stick. The snake had never seen such a thing before and, being curious, stuck its head into the opening. The inside of the bamboo stick was dark and the snake found the shape of the stick quite challenging to work its way through. The snake began to feel anxious, grief-stricken, and eventually a little depressed that it was now stuck inside this foreign, very tight, shadowy object. However, once the snake's body was completely inside of the bamboo stick, it realized that it could not back out. It could only move forward, in the dark, and straighten itself out before it could reach the other side.

I feel in some ways like the snake in the bamboo stick.  This stick is partly made by others and partly of my own making, but I think that with my own moving forward and a little professional help in breaking down the stick, I can get through it.  It's not an easy way out, but it can be done.  I just have to work at it and try not to flare my queen cobra hood...