The Good of No Path

Today…

So many good things happened in the first few hours of today. I stopped at the post office and picked up my mail on the way to physical therapy.

I sat in the parking lot waiting for my appointment to get closer and tore open my envelopes.

I cried.

Every part of me felt relieved. So much of that tightness in my body loosened. You know that tightness that makes it hard to breath sometimes…

And it wasn’t just because of the words in the letters that loosened up that tightness. I felt like everything I had been doing reconfirmed that I was making progress in the right ways.

I am eternally grateful for the blessings and favor He has shined over me and in me.

It took me some time and a walk through the darkness to really see Him and let myself be guided.

I’ve been working through a lot and, most importantly, working on me for me.

When I say this, it’s not meant to be a selfish thing. They say “put on the oxygen mask first”. It’s always been said.

I’ve even said it.

It’s always been stressed; on a plane and in life. We have to take care of ourselves to be better for others.

But what if we are better for ourselves and the rest just falls into place?

I’m currently watching Ron’s Gone Wrong. There is a moment when Ron and Barney are in the forest and they come up to a path split in two. Barney says “it’s a two way street, right?” and let’s Ron decide. Ron goes off the two very clear paths and takes a plunge off a cliff into water.

There is something about this scene that clicked with what I’ve been working through. I mean, it wasn’t an accident that I started watching this movie today.

I had a rough go in Physical Therapy. My physical therapist had to force me to take a break otherwise I would have kept going. I have to keep going, but progress means taking a break. I decided to skip the marathon of Matrix Resurrections (such a great movie!) and Encanto (love it!) and try this movie.

Ron’s Gone Wrong wasn’t even on my radar for the day, but it jumped out at me and I had to watch it. I’ve only seen blips of the trailers and it looked cute, but I wasn’t counting down the days like I had with other movies.

And then I pressed play.

I got a good chunk of my post started and then that scene came up and the whole thing took a different turn.

It wasn’t by accident.

Nothing is by accident.

If I ever said it before, it was hollow. The meaning of things have a new color, a new texture, a restored faith.

And it started long before my surgery…it made people angry to see me doing better for me. Even as limited as my progress was, it absolutely infuriated some because I wasn’t moving through life on their path. I wasn’t understood. I needed to be understood.

Or so I thought.

This scene where Ron chose to take a path not laid out in front of them, there was no trail left behind for anyone else.

Who says being on your path means it’s a path to others? Who says every direction you turn is for anyone but you?

Don’t underestimate yourself. Others may. They might even try to push you down because they’ve underestimated you. They might even build walls to keep you in one direction.

Baabbyy!

Don’t force yourself down someone else’s path. If you’ve got a direction in mind, go. It could be your very essence leading you through the rough terrain only to find where you’re supposed to go.

Not everyone can climb the mountain with you. Not everyone can move through the mud with you.

Not everyone can be at your table. Not everyone can be on your boat.

Put in the work.

The right people will dance with you in the mud and hand you a towel to clean off your face.

If you take nothing else from this post, remember this 👇🏾