When leaping into uncomfortable and unexpected places, stay flexible about the landing

HYPED.

My friend and I have this thing where we’re both very happy and very content with the lives we’re each living.  

AND we have this -other- thing where we recognize the need to occasionally challenge our comfort zones. 

We recently chose the uncomfortable and gave ourselves a challenge. We went into this challenge with a good attitude and a great sense of humor. 

And a fair amount of existential dread.

(At least, for me.)

We took this photo moments before stepping all in toward our discomfort and into a new timeline with new opportunities. 

You can see it in our eyes: we’re nervous. But excited. 

And, we are READY. 

Dare I say, we are HYPED.

Three seconds after snapping this pic – this pic where we look happy and confident and giddy about the moments to come –  the door to our future slid open.

The door to our future slid open, and we stepped across a threshold.

We stepped across a threshold and got blasted by an icy cold 30 mile per hour wind. 

Ruffled, we took our first steps.

Undeterred, we glanced around.

The place we challenged ourselves to get to was empty. Totally devoid of life.

The place we'd battled our internal demons to enter was literally closed. Unhospitable.  

Shocked by the sudden change in energy, we wandered for a moment in disbelief. 

We’d gone from KILLING IT to DEAD in 3 seconds flat.  

Naturally, we began to giggle.

Giggles turn to lols. 

Lols turn to snorts.

(At least, for me.) 

All that build up. The planning. The outfit changes. The 30-some pre-event anxiety texts. 

Were they all for naught?

O h H e l l N o.  

Because we’d still done The Thing. 

We just got an outcome that we hadn't expected.

It was an unexpected outcome that led us to a new choice point. 

Do we sit in the suffering of “IT’S NOT SUPPOSED TO BE THIS WAY!”?

Do we take our happy asses back home?

Or do we trust there’s another plan for us? A plan that's better than the one our minds had come up with. A newer, better plan that lives inside the energetic space we’d opened up while snapping this very pic? 

Well, us being us, we chose to keep going, to try a new place. 

Because as middleagers, we’ve lived enough life to know:

Sometimes we don't get the outcome we plan for.

That when we ask for a change, we are asked to take leaps. And sometimes those leaps lead us to unexpected spaces and places.

(Like a freezing cold rooftop with no signs of life, anywhere.)

This message is a reminder to anyone who wishes to make changes in their lives. A reminder that the other side of the leap isn’t necessarily the immediate, amazing moment you’d hope for.

In fact, leaping may leave you feeling disoriented.

Or disappointed.

But it doesn't mean it was a "bad" choice.

It's not a sign you’ve done something wrong.

It's simply a reminder to stay flexible. And that flexibility can, in time, lead you to amazing places and wonderful spaces. 

Eventually, my friend and I landed in a new spot. One we hadn’t expected but brought us a great deal of fun and joy. And we’ve opened ourselves up to the ENERGY of new experiences, so we now expect future adventures. 

Remember, we’re always exactly where we’re meant to be. 

Stay uncomfortable, friends.