TRY!!!

Don't you have to at least do this? Sure, it is easier not to, but really? Don't you want to be able to say, "I did that!"? Even if falling on your rear while you descend the 40 foot rock wall can be a lot of fun, you might have allowed the terror you thought would keep your feet on the ground to stop you. I have noticed and allowed myself to try new things lately...a lot of new things. Things that TOTALLY (remember, from So Cal) make me nervous to where I could be getting "the look" or the "flipping pages in the magazine" reminders. But, I am trying. "Before you quit, try." - Ernest Hemingway. Don't you owe yourself that much? No one will do it for you. Plus, you get the greatest joy when you can say, "I DID THAT!" And when you try, you live with no regrets. When I look back on my life, I have plenty of things I wish I had done differently. But we usually only wish we could change those things that turned out badly. We do not usually wish we could change those things that worked out well. But living with regrets means you hold onto those things you cannot change. Someone told me once that I would learn not to regret, but I really did not know what she meant. I love to give to others...it absolutely brings me the biggest joy. I can take the easy rode and not try, but sometimes what is easy for me might be difficult for others. Yoda said, "There is no try...there is do or do not." Because essentially, if you try, you do. Right? Right.

What are you capable of?

Seriously? Yes, it is early and I am on a roll already. Although this comment was made to me in a different context this morning, it sent me here. Again. I pose these questions not just for my benefit but really to get you think...to ignite the light...to really question what you can do with your life. Ultimately, these choices are yours. How do you answer what you are capable of? Even if you think you know, do you REALLY know? I think it changes every day. For example, I never thought I was capable of running from here to the end of my driveway when Rocky and I first hit the pavement some 16 months ago. But as my stamina (and heart rate) increased, so did my ability to do more. Eventually, we went further with "10 more steps" and then could run a mile without stopping. I am in CONSTANT disbelief when I took a quick look at what I have done in the last 18 months. It seems almost like it passed in a blink and yet I could tell you a lot of things that I will always treasure. What do you want to do? I was just asked to participate in a triathlon in October. I am not training for one, so just the mere thought of actually doing it has my head spinning around like one of those rides at the amusement park. I am not dismissing the fact that I don't think I can do it and this is still the year of, "Why not?" - but can you say, PUMA? I was astounded today by comments made to me about what I did for someone without really even trying. What I did was not a goal I had in mind, nor was it something that I would trade for anything. But that was as reminder of what I can do - what I am capable of - especially as new versions of life present themselves. Do not settle on what you are capable of now, because it will change. Maybe it will surprise you in ways you never thought possible. Maybe it will generate the strongest passion in you so that you can live your dream. Maybe you don't have the answers yet. But, I promise you...if you keep asking the questions and trying (even through failure and unexpected disappointments)...if you look for support (even in places you never thought it would be)...if you just believe...you will find what you are capable of and change your life. You are capable of so much more than what you see right now. I am living proof of that and I believe it. So can you.