THRESHOLD CROSSING

"If I take one more step, I'll be the farthest from home that I've ever been."

- Samwise Gamgee, film adaptation of "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring"

When the hero approaches the THRESHOLD OF ADVENTURE  his or her choices have dwindled down to very few.  They can choose to cross the THRESHOLD willingly, they can turn away from the THRESHOLD altogether (which at this point would mean symbolic death and the end of the adventure), or they can be dragged proverbially kicking and screaming across the THRESHOLD into the adventure.  In any case they will run into the THRESHOLD GUARDIAN, who will force the hero to earn his passage across the threshold and into the greater adventure.   Once the THRESHOLD is crossed there is no turning back.  A great example of the THRESHOLD CROSSING is in the film "The Matrix".  Morpheus (MENTOR) offers Neo the choice, take the blue pill or the red pill.  Neo makes his choice and almost instantly begins to see the consequences of his decision.  The world as he knows it begins to warp and change and then he awakens to find himself in a technological nightmare world.  When he is finally recovered by Morpheus' crew, Morpheus appropriately greets him, "Welcome, to the real world."   There is no turning back, Neo is now deep into the adventure.