I left my house today finally. The rain fell in sheets. I couldn’t see more than a few feet in front of me and couldn’t help but think that this was some strange reflection of my current affairs. Life can be a storm sometimes. It can be days on days of downpours, cold winds and little to no visibility. As I made my way down the highway, I felt numb—not particularly alert to my surroundings, but aware of the fact that things could be turn disastrous at any moment. How often is that the case? We’re cruising through life, hoping to avoid bad drivers during the most inclement weather. Just like focusing on our past, we can’t focus on what’s in our rear view mirror too long or we’ll end up crashing. And like our future, we can’t see more than the blurred brake lights wafting in and out of our present moment. So there we sit—Flying down a treacherous road during a storm that won’t let up, having to drive defensively because of road mates hell bent on barreling by without care for others. I remind myself that somedays I will be able to make this drive while laughing and singing. Some days I won’t have to take this drive alone. But above all, I remind myself that life, much like Louisiana weather, is fickle. The sun will come out. The clouds will part. I’ll see more milestones along the road to my destination as long as I keep driving.
As I’m chugging down the slippery roads, I also realize the importance of preparation. When I left home, I had an intention to go to the store to pick up a few items for my workout. But with the rain so heavy, and my heart so distracted I ended up driving far beyond my intended destination because of my poor preparation. Had I mapped out my destination, or used my GPS—I would’ve been much less likely to wander. But how often do we do this in our everyday lives? We fail to commit to a plan. We don’t write out our actionable steps or know the numbers necessary to get us to where we want to be. But wait! A lack of preparation doesn’t derail the whole journey—it certainly costs more…more in resources, more in time and more in energy. But sometime that extra cost is worthwhile—perhaps Grace allows us the chance to circumvent some pitfalls that we weren’t even aware of. It’s in the wandering that we find wisdom. It’s where we grow up, where we find our bravery and where we challenge ourselves to change the most.
So I can’t say that I’m wishing for sunny days because sunny days don’t push us to travel beyond our comfort zones. If I were being honest—gratitude isn’t what I’m feeling either, although that would probably help to shift the paradigm the most. Annoyance, worry, a palpable grieving for something I don’t know if I ever even had—those might be some of these traveling feelings. But hope peeks through the crowd. In the end I am encouraged and hopeful because if you can identify how you feel, observe the road ahead, maintain control of your driving focus and stay the course—you have no other outcome but to arrive at your intended destination.
We will have what we say. And we will create our world exponentially faster when we commit to our plans and when we hold ourselves accountable for executing that plan. Don’t hate yourself for falling short or changing course. Don’t be disappointed in the weather, good or bad—it’s something you can’t change. But do remember that you have a purpose in your journey. The space you occupy is valuable, and the voice you cultivate while on your journey deserves to be heard.