Risks

It's been a very long time since I've sat down and actually blogged. How do I sum up the past few months of my life? Maybe I'll start with a theme. The theme I shall give it will be... taking chances. Since the beginning of this year my life has been a lot about taking risks. I sacrificed my time to try to get into a really great school, and a few months later when I found out I had been accepted I had a very hard decision on deciding where to go. This meant I would be starting over in a new place for another nearly countless time, or I could stay in the same, happy, familiar place that I was. However, hoping to gain better experiences, I opted for the new school. That was a huge risk for me, because once the commitment was made there was no turning back. Yet, now I am a student there and I love it! It's definitely more challenging, but it's great meeting more and more people and learning more about all different kinds of culture. It's an eye-opener for sure. About a month ago, I also went on a very challenging hike. If you don't know me personally, then you should know that I am the most uncoordinated, clumsy person ever. I feel like I'm always bumping into people, knocking things over, bruising my hip on a corner of a counter, etc. So, adding sports, dance, or any other kind of physical activity to that is clearly not ideal. Anyways, back to what I was saying... Just before this huge overnight hike I was going to go on with a group of friends, I got an ingrown toenail thanks to some man that clipped my nails too short when I went to get a pedicure. And because of this, I had to get it removed just a week before the hike. The hike, I knew, was going to be strenuous, exhausting, and of course, very difficult. And, at first, I wasn't sure that I should have been going considering that my toe was still healing. However, with all of this considered, I was convinced to go by my peers and I ended up taking the chance. When I returned, I had blisters on my feet, dirt all over my arms, bruises on my collarbone and hip bones from carrying my huge bag up and down the 4 mile hike, but no problem with the toe had ever occurred. In the end, I was so glad I did it. If I hadn't, I would have regretted not having done it because I would have eventually realized that I would've been fine and I totally could have gone. It was fun getting to spend more time with friends and getting to know them, and it helped me become even closer to them. There are just so many blessings that can happen when you just take the chance. Like John Burroughs said, "Leap, and the net will appear." So if you're struggling with something, and you're unsure of what to do, I say follow your gut. Say a prayer. Whatever you normally do. But make sure to follow the prompting that you feel you should do. If you don't feel a prompting to go one way or the other, I say just pick the one you really want more and if it's not supposed to work out, it won't. Everything happens for a reason, after all. Just do what makes you happy. It's what I've done so far, and you know what? I've never looked back. xo, M