Choosing the right path: answering the question

Photo by Jamie Street on Unsplash.

In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. ~ Proverbs 3:6

How do you know you’re on the right path? The closed doors—or in our case a power outage—seem obvious. Yet what about when details fall into place, doors open, it looks like a done deal and then…[read more]

Looking within: discovering plenty amidst the lack

As I mentioned in my post, “Another way to look at the pandemic ‘pause,’” I’m discovering new things about myself since 2020 took a major detour. While much becomes ingrained in our habits and thought processes simply because “that’s the way I’ve always done it,” the current COVID-19 climate has required a mandatory “pivoting” of our mindsets. One shining example: When my daughter’s gym temporarily closed due to the social-distancing order, it crushed her. Although she knew it afforded a minor inconvenience overall, she dreaded a derailment of her fitness goals. However, after a short-lived pity party, she soon realized that everything she needed to maintain her daily practice stared her in the face. In fact, she recently conquered—and exceeded—her goals. But not without inner resolve, a dash of creativity and a boatload of fierce grit. I couldn’t be prouder of her. It’s heartening how a global crisis can reveal the best within us. If we let it.

Where have you discovered plenty amidst the lack?

Image courtesy of cooldesign at FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

How low can you go?

[Graphic image: Stuart Miles]

Prior to my trip last month, I conjured up “high road” expectations to include more time with family and friends.  Unfortunately, this was a route I had little control over.  I could make myself available, but if others were tied up with their own thing, then a detour was necessary.  However, without my typical back-up plans in place, I found myself disappointed and on my own more often than I would have preferred, sometimes casting blame and finger-pointing with no just cause.  In the past, I’ve blogged about maintaining expectations more on the low road to avoid discontent, although still always hoping for more.  And while finding a happy medium between the two roads is not always easy, this time I’d like to think I learned my lesson.  When I have little control over the outcome, I’ll attempt to adjust my expectations accordingly.  At least that’s the plan.

How do you maneuver the two roads in order to find a happy medium?

The road(s) to happiness

[Image credit: bulldogza]

People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness.
Just because they’re not on your road
doesn’t mean they’ve gotten lost. ~ H. Jackson Browne

I like this quote.  It serves to remind us that each individual is unique in his or her own way, and that there’s no one right road to getting where we’re going.  It’s easy to attribute someone’s downfall, or even their success, to this or that path on which they traveled — and oftentimes it’s true.  And sometimes it looks like we’ve gotten lost when it’s simply a detour, without which we may not know what we were missing or appreciate what we had.  Or maybe while we’re traveling, we find ourselves distracted by the roadside attractions along the way, making it difficult to stay between the lines.  I like to think of these memory markers as milestones: the moments in our lives which stand out as catalysts for change.  One or more of them might even prove to be a fork in our path that leads us on a completely different journey.  But somehow we all manage to reach the end of the road.

Do you prefer staying between the lines, or taking a few detours along the way?