I believe opportunities and experiences cross our paths for a reason.  The trick is understanding the reason.  Sometimes the reason is very clear while other times the reason my be completely obscured; yet, I believe you often know intuitively that it is an opportunity or experience you are to pursue and learn from and jump in even when the reason for it is unclear.  Yes…I know…pretty darn deep for a Monday morning.

I have been thinking about this these past couple of days as I have in the past evidenced a penchant toward going to auto-pilot in life when it is convenient and in that mode I am not reflective of the big picture reasons for my opportunities and experiences.  It is said by many that being present in the moment…living in the moment…is what life is really about.  While I don’t disagree with the sentiment generally of being actively present in the moments of one’s life, I do believe there are some things that are bigger than the moment- some things that require living beyond the moment and sometimes into a leap of faith.  That leap is, I believe, tied to opportunities and experiences that one intuitively knows matter, but cannot presently fathom the reason for.

On the wall above my desk hangs a sign I had made many years ago that says, "Sometimes you have to take the leap and build your wings on the way down" (author unknown).  I have come to live by this mantra, not because I want to throw caution and an examined life to the wind, but because sometimes you just have to trust in the fact that the universe works generally in favor of your growth and development.  My mantra has served me well, as it has served as a constant reminder that sometimes you just have to take that leap of faith.

Now granted, leaps of faith are relative to the frame in which they are built.  Having a few decades on the planet as an adult and a myriad of experiences helps to frame my leaps of faith – I am hardly jumping off mountain tops with no idea of what is below.  More or less, my leaps of faith deal with taking chances that will challenge my known ability or capacity.  Sometimes these are big things, such as major life changes, and sometimes they are more subtle things, such as extending myself for the sake of growing into a better version of me. 

I am taking a leap of faith presently.  A leap that is somewhat outside my comfort zone, but seems to contain both an opportunity to learn about myself and an opportunity to be more of the person I want to evolve to be.  It requires me to suspend my fear of falling and to trust in the value of the experience – even if it does result in me being a splat on the sidewalk (yes, a lovely image I know – but I would ultimately be a more evolved splat than I was prior – so at least that’s something).  It challenges me to think about what I have to contribute to others and what really matters in life.  It allows me to see both my strengths and my weaknesses in a way I have not seen them before which makes it both exhilirating and nauseating at the same time.

This leap of faith will not be denoted as a major milestone in my life; indeed, it is likely relative to the big picture, fairly minor.  It represents some decidely fine tuning of my soul and my understanding of what I have to give to, and learn from, others in this life.  Likely, the potency of this leap will mellow over time in my mind’s eye; but, today I recognize I am taking it and I am good with it because I believe there is intrinsic value in the experience.

Yes, this is the way I plan to start the week – reflective and oh so deep.  After last week such a week is in order (as last week was not all that reflective or deep – well maybe it was deep – but not necessarily in thought).  Never fear, the week is just beginning – there is still time for the week to go to hell in a handbasket or for me to go splat on the proverbial sidewalk of life – but, hey…isn’t that what it is all about?  No guts – no glory. 😉

Day three hundred and nine of the new forty – obla di obla da

CC