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Sometimes life lessons are learned in those big moments that we can look back on and say "That was when I learned...". Most of the time though, they're learned in the moments between. When you take a breath. When you close your eyes. When you cry.
I learned my biggest life lesson that way—in the moments between. I can look back on my life and see when I didn't know it, and when I did. It's easy to see because one path was dark and lonely, while the other was sunny and inviting.
That path opened up to me when I decided to try to fix my life troubles instead of complaining about them. To try to accept responsibility for the failures instead of blaming others. To try to make my life better myself, rather than expecting someone else to come along and fix it for me.
I can't find the quote, but I swear the character Ducky from Land Before Time talked about being a "tryer." At least, it was while watching one of the million episodes of that show with my kids that I realized the lesson I'd learned.
I learned that if you ever want to improve your life, or make a change of any kind, there's really only one thing you need to do.
TRY.
Trying is a skill that doesn't come naturally to all of us, but it can be learned, and it really is the key to achieving anything.
Too often we live the same basic situation over and over and over, all the while knowing we need to change, but unable to figure out how. I've been there, and I watched my mom live like that for years.
Here we are, living our lives, doing our thing, and a crisis comes. Not all crises are bad—crisis just means a turning point when a decision needs to be made.
Thing is, we're creatures of habit and it's always easier to stick with what we know. But what if your life could do with a change? What if you chose something different—what would that look like?
I wanted to know the answers to those "what if..." questions, so I decided to embrace the concept of trying. To try new things, to take that chance, to learn something new, to keep hope alive.
It hasn't always been easy. In fact, I've fallen on my face plenty of times. But the greatest leaps of faith have led to my life's greatest joys. And even those falls have taught me something. They've taught me resilience, patience and how to get back on my feet so I can try, try again.
Next time you're between moments and you have a chance to breathe, take a look at your life. Have you been coasting on what you know, doing what you've always done? If you're ready for a change, to reach for your dreams, to live the life you deserve, open yourself up to the possibilities of what could be. And then...try.