cross the hurdles

I recently came across this quote and feel I must start this writing with it:

“One road leads home and a thousand roads lead into the wilderness.” C.S. Lewis

Isn’t that a great quote? Nothing to be intimidated by … nothing to be fear, although I must admit, it does sound daunting.

If you’ve ever been in the throes of addiction of any sort, food, alcohol, gambling, sex, social media, drugs, etc., it’s easy to see how these behaviors can be one or several of the thousand referred to by C.S. Lewis.

If we rid ourselves of these self-destructive behaviors, which can be very difficult, what are we left with? Well, difficult to hear but the answer is, we’re left with the work that needs to be done to ensure that we’ve straightened out our trajectory, so that we don’t have to engage with addictions ever again.

What else can stop us? What else is one of the thousand roads?

What about letting fear stop us, or stagnation, or indifference?

The life you want requires work. It requires commitment. It requires willingness.

It’s not always great news to hear that we must put forth the effort, especially when we don’t feel like it, or when we’re hesitant or scared. The fact that it isn’t always fun is an invalid reason to not engage or to disengage with what needs to be done, to move our lives forward.

The wonderful news is, when we aspire to that road, we get help.

I’ve never been able to explain it in a way that can be easily understood but the Universe (or whatever one might be comfortable calling it) recognizes when we’re on a path, be it a path of conscious improvement, or a path of self-destruction.

Ever wonder why, when you’re engaging in damaging behaviors, people magically show up in your life who do the same things? It’s not magic, it’s what we’ll call a law. Like attracts like.

Similarly, when you change the game and you commit to it and take it seriously (but not too seriously), people magically show up in your life that support you moving toward the life you’ve envisioned. 

I’ve had the fortune of experiencing both extremes and each of them has been instrumental in moving me forward to the life that I envisioned long ago. In fact, truth be told, the life that I envisioned is long behind me. I have been very blessed to have a life that I never in my wildest dreams knew was possible.

How has the life of the (we’ll call it) southerly trajectory, away from True North, been instrumental in moving me forward? Well, because it illustrated to me, very clearly, what I didn’t want, and what I didn’t want to attract into my life … ever again.

The first requirement for change is generally this: You must become sick and tired of being sick and tired. Of what? Of many things. It could be the addictions, the fears, the stagnation, your own BS that you’re not buying anymore, the misery, the despair, or all of the above.

It doesn’t really matter what it takes to get you there, as long as you get there. You must become willing to change, must become willing to do things differently; to live differently; to seek help; to know that you don’t know.

Until that hurdle is crossed, you may very likely keep churning the same old stuff, the same old life that has brought you to this crossroad.