> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://lashae.gitbook.io/lashae-docs/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://lashae.gitbook.io/lashae-docs/the-protocol/trails.md).

# trails

A trail is a goal, drawn as a path.

You bring the goal. The **Cartographer** draws the path.

## the shape of a trail

```
trail
├─ title          (a single line, serif)
├─ description    (a paragraph, no more)
├─ timeframe      (e.g. "4 weeks", "one season", "as long as it takes")
├─ difficulty     (gentle | steady | hard)
└─ steps          (5–10 ordered entries, each a footprint-in-waiting)
```

Each **step** is a concrete, real-world or digital act that can be completed and left as proof. The Cartographer is instructed never to write a step it cannot picture being done.

## drawing a trail

You give the Cartographer three things: a **goal**, a **timeframe**, and a **difficulty**. It returns a trail: a title, a description, and 5–10 steps.

The trail is not sacred. You may:

* **rewrite** any step, at any time.
* **insert** a step the Cartographer forgot.
* **remove** a step that no longer matters.
* **abandon** the trail — trails may be closed as *walked* or as *released*. There is no penalty for release. The field remembers both.

## walking a trail

You walk a trail by leaving footprints against its steps. A step is complete when it has at least one footprint linked to it. A trail is complete when every step has a footprint, or when you have declared it walked.

The field does not require completion. Many trails are walked halfway, and this is still a walking.

## trails vs. to-do lists

A to-do list is a scoreboard. A trail is a path. The difference:

* a **to-do** disappears when checked. a **step** becomes a footprint, and stays.
* a **to-do** is optimised for *finishing*. a **step** is optimised for *walking*.
* a **to-do** shames you for the untouched box. a **trail** simply waits.


---

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