Sometimes you have to step away.
Some days you may need to be the builder.
Yet, other days you may need to be the architect.
And, no doubt, many days you will be both architect and builder
Of your career, of love, of life, of memories, of loss, of happiness
And so much more.
You will taste failure from time to time
Its putrid smell and sourness leaving an afterbite you won’t quickly forget
And more than likely, a lesson learned will be a guest at your table
You will look for the expiration date on said failure, shocked to find that it doesn’t have one
Because it can come at anytime
But you are strong and resilient and you will take a seat at the table
Again and again
And when you do, you will find the secret ingredient
To success
You will delight in its recipe
Its sweet and savory flavor will be like no other
Filling you up and perhaps even causing you to seek
Seconds, even thirds
What will you choose?
Who will you choose?
What is it that you desire?
Did you find it at the table where you sat so patiently?
Or did life lead you down an unexpected path?
Perhaps you sat at more than one table
Maybe you waited
Perhaps you got anxious at having to wait
But eventually, it arrived
As you sat in the silence, did you hear the whispers, the echoes, the call?
One day you may wake, and everything is different
So you say to yourself, “If we aren’t supposed to mold our life, then why do we possess clay?”
For which life will smile, and say:
Design. Build. Fortify.
Shape your clay.
Create.
Choose what it is you want to build
And choose you – always
But know this:
The mold, well, it may break from time to time.
A crack may appear, the color may fade, and the design may seem dated.
But the clay is still there underneath the surface.
It is malleable, and in its malleability, it offers opportunity.
Life will shift.
Uncertainty will veil what you once knew
You may feel as though you’ve vomited all night
And then the world vomited on you
And you will wonder, “why?”
You may ask, “How can this be?”
Doubt may enter
But you will show it the exit
Because courage will guide you
Don’t be afraid to explore.
Change is the constant knocking at your door
You decide whether to open it.
Know that what you feel or don’t feel often is more profound than you may think
Signs will present themselves
But you may not always see them – at first
Your lens may get cloudy
Eyes may redden, burn, and water from too much we wish we could unsee
And bodies may collapse in exhaustion from too many detours in one journey
“But we’ve weathered so much,” you may say
To which life may reply:
Storms are always imminent
They linger in the air
They lie in wait
Their tumultuous reign may wreak havoc on the most vital part of your core
But you are stronger
In the whisper of the night, you will sigh from a mind restless with what-ifs
But you will rest knowing that you tried
As you peek out at the midnight sky
It whispers good night
And you smile
Because you’ve been here before.
Laura, Beautiful words, with both sadness and hope for us to reflect on.
Dear Laura,
Your words reflect so many feelings from ecstasy to trauma and back to acknowledging that life has many turns and pathways where we choose to walk and experience varying levels of doubt, confusion and ultimately the realisation that you entered a sphere of clouded horizons and emerged all the better.
Thank you so much Laura; I certainly resonate with you.