SHOULD I OR SHOULD’NT I?

SHOULD I OR SHOULD’NT I?

I was walking on the sidewalk in a neighborhood that I didn’t know existed in my city when I read a sign posted on a utility pole. “DANGER DO NOT CLIMB.” I thought, “Dah, why would anyone want to try?” The following morning, I read words penned by my new favorite author/poet, Mark Nepo… “living over hiding, being over thinking, participating over observing, thriving over surviving,” and the danger sign flashed in my head. Follow along as I attempt to draw in words MY connection between the two.

Living is risky business. The simple act of crossing the street is a risk. Sometimes risks are as apparent as the nose on my face and other times hidden. Whether hidden or in your face, all must take them… that is if one is to do more than lie in bed filled with the possibility of doom. Words uttered by others or the naysaying inner voice saying, “DANGER DO NOT CLIMB” can cause one to succumb to “their overtrained intellect” causing a state of paralysis where thinking and observing replaces doing and participating… surviving rather than thriving. Social media, the format where everything and everybody are living ever so beautifully, shows us we don’t stand a chance of measuring up so, “DANGER DO NOT CLIMB (try)” keeps the feet firmly planted in the spot of the safety and familiarity.

Here’s the reality check about this danger warning! Each of us are placed on earth for a specific purpose, to complete a unique masterpiece and to leave a lasting imprint. No other human can complete our task. Without your engagement the intended imprimatur of you upon the world will never happen. To engage means risking the potential for something to happen.

“DANGER DO NOT CLIMB” if heeded, has the potential of leading to being suspended in a quagmire constructed of unfulfilled expectations and dreams, disappointments, where constant striving without thriving can occur. Rescue from the quagmire requires risk taking.

With the feet off the safety of the sidewalk, one might get a better perspective of what and how their potential might be realized. From a vantage point of risk, one has a better chance to catch a glimpse of how to live as cohabitant with challenges and obstacles versus being a doormat for them. When one risks climbing from the safe but stuck place, habits are broken, intellectual discourse turns into actions for forward movement.

“DANGER DO NOT CLIMB” understandably served a valid purpose on the utility pole on the street where I saw it. It may even serve a valid purpose under certain circumstances of ordinary life. However, if you should discover that it has become a rule of thumb for your life you might want to do a bit of introspection.

Ecclesiastes 11:4

PONDER THIS THOUGHT---Embedded in taking risks and fear are the ingredients that make life worth living.