Leap /leep/ verb: To spring forward with force

July of 2014 I decided to just go!

Go where? It didn’t really matter. Because all I knew was that I wanted change. I needed a change.

I was 30 – I know, just a lil’ spring chicken, a baby, with all the time in the world ahead of me. But that’s never how I saw it. I always felt as though I was running out of time, as if time showed me no mercy. For most of my adult life I’ve felt like I’ve been running this sprint race against time. And sometimes I conquer my feats winning in 1^st place and other times I feel like I’ve failed miserably.

So half way through 2014, I had drained myself to a point where I didn’t want to over think another thing. I thought, let me try a different approach. That approach consisted of me taking a huge chance on my future. But was it really such a big deal? I mean people relocate all the time.

Normally I’m a planner. I usually have it all figured out, but this time, all I knew was I was moving – to Atlanta. That was it. No job. No apartment. No plan.

Although, that’s the part I felt great about. I was excited to have no plan. As time went by and I slowly began to tell close friends and family that I was moving, of course their first question was, “Well what are you going to do?”, and my proud response was  “I have no idea!” It felt amazing, probably the most liberating experience to date.

I made up my mind. I had to go. The surface reason of me relocating was based on change. But the core reason my gut motioned for me to take that step was because I yearned to trust myself and lean into this journey called life.

In this day to day we shuffle, we create our own version of dancing the Tango, to the beat of our To-do lists, and mulling after all the monotone of what has to get done before the clock strikes that golden hour! Whatever that is! Here I was, rushing to the next appointment, driving down the same road I drove down 3 times already within the same day, to go home and heat up leftovers I ate the night before.

And to wake up and begin a brand new dance to the beat of a brand new list of things to do.

I wanted more. I wanted something new. I wanted to experience something so different that I was willing to risk my sanity. I was willing to risk it all falling apart.

All I did was make a decision to leap forward. I created a new habit of leaping. I made it a priority to make sure that I experienced life through a new set of eyes every day, so that I could gain a renewed courage to leap forward.

We have to force ourselves into new arenas. The fight has to be won with you and you alone. People can advise you along the way, and share their stories to comfort your discomforts, but nothing will cure your lack of courage than to spring yourself forward with force. You literally have to propel yourself into a new season of loving the unknown and placing a higher value on taking life one day at a time.

One of my favorite quotes, is the Serenity Prayer, it states “God Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things that I can, and the wisdom to know the difference”

How beautiful is that! To have confidence in being granted the peace to know things probably won’t work out exactly how you planned, but if you have to make adjustments along the way, knowing that God will honor your efforts with courage to change anything you have the ability to change, yet knowing to yield to the things that you have no control over.

Nothing else screams GO, and Leap forward louder than that does!

Leap! Your tomorrow depends on it, and your peace today requires it.