"Human beings are constantly trying to take courageous paths in their lives: in their marriages, in their relationships, in their work and with themselves. But the human way is to hope that there's a way to take that courageous step--without having one's heart broken. And it's my contention that there is no secure path a human being can take without breaking his or her heart." David Whythe
My first thought is to wish someone told me this when I was a teenager. There's a heartbreak from that era that haunted and ran my life for decades. I have heartbreak regarding my kids, my marriage, my sister, the way I acted as a kid to my parents and the way the kid part of me acted when I was too old to act that way. I have heartbreak about how I was and the courage I didn't have. The list is plump and capacious, and the land of regret is definitely not a cozy place to visit and then revisit.
If we're traveling the human path, our hearts get broken. We risk and are disappointed, most often with ourselves. We blame. We are found wanting. We try to forgive, and we move on. And we learn. I would have missed so much if I hadn't had the courage to make myself vulnerable, to risk, to try, to take an unpopular stand, to go where I wanted to go without training wheels.
There is no secure path. There are no get out of jail cards. So just get out there. Check out your heart's desires. Know that you may be disappointed and also know that you will be giddy with accomplishments.
Baruch ata adonai...thank you for making me human. Thank you for waking me this morning. Thank you for helping me learn how to pray, and to be brave, and to learn life is full of everything. Open my eyes. Open my heart to a willingness to experience even if it means it might be broken again. I'm still here and I am grateful. Amen
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