Risking Growth

Recently, I took a forward stroke toward achieving something that is not only important for me, but concerns the lives of many others, as well. Involved in this chapter of my story, is a place that I never desired to go. Unchartered, untraveled territory which will require tenacity, determination, and unadulterated chutzpah, span the distance ahead of me; but I have no choice. I have done all that I could in order to sail the smoothest route, but when the shark continued nipping wildly at my toes, I had to make the decision to do more than just quietly removing my toes from the water. I had to calculate the risks involved in diving into the water along with the shark.

Risk, in itself, often carries with it a negative connotation. Risk can leave us feeling exposed. It causes us to face the unknown. It leaves us open to the elements. By avoiding risk, we might feel as if we can also avoid things like rejection, guilt, being wrong, conflict and anger, but the truth is that by avoiding risk, we also avoid growth. And to me, there could be nothing worse than leading a life that is stagnant. Without taking risks, there is nothing to be gained. We must take risks because the greatest hazard in life is to risk nothing at all. To gain nothing. To go nowhere. Without taking risks, how will we ever understand our own capacity for strength?

I am standing on the precipice of a decision that I, along with Mark and our Angel Daughters, have made in lieu of drowning in a sea of regrets. It is a place that not many have stood upon before us, and the view is a bit uncertain from here. But one thing is for sure. The risk is not what will eat me alive. I feel safe in my uncertainty because it would be the inaction, not the action of taking the risk, which would leave me open to the whim of this shark, and that is something which would certainly pull me under.

Take a risk, love. Look into the face of whatever shark is nipping at your toes, and make the decision to swim for your life.

A Self-Portrait or Not allowing the Waves to Drag You Down

Standing on this rock, yesterday, I looked down at my shoes(my very favorite beach shoes because they are great for climbing rocks) and watched as the ocean breathed in and then out, in and then out.  I felt somewhat safe and anchored from on top of my little perch which protected me from the oncoming movement of the tide.
The chilly saltwater gently approached my little haven of momentary security and settled at my toes, but only for a few brief seconds.  
It brought with it a foamy layer which carried surprises in from the sea.  I watched as this went on for a fairly long time, the ocean's steady breathing.

I thought about how most everything in our lives can be mimicked by nature.   Breathing, birth, loss, miracles and even calculated risk.  "Calculated risk", something I have often tried to teach my four Angel daughters about and have tried to balance in my own life, as well.  Knowing when to step forward and when to retreat.  Trusting your own instincts so that you don't end up falling on your bottom, soaking wet with sand down your pants.  Or worse, taking a step too far and being dragged out into a rip-tide, unable to recognize which end is up or down.
So as I waited for the water to retreat, once more, I jumped off of my rock and began to scurry happily(and still quite dry) away from the impending crash of the waves.  And as I stopped to snap just one more picture, there was the water where my toes once held their ground.

May I take this moment to express my heartfelt gratitude to all of my readers.  May I say thank you for the beautifully thought-out comments that you leave for me, and for the silent prayers and well-wishes when you don't.  I treasure every word, every prayer and every positive thought that is sent my way.  May you always find a safe place in which to weigh the risks.