Last week my yoga instructor once again said something that stuck in my mind and caused some contemplation. She said:
"Your life begins at the edge of your comfort zone."
Immediately I thought, "That's where boredom comes from!" Then I pictured the scene: me standing, all alone, on solid, warm, golden brown sand with the sun shining behind me. In front of my toes there was a line. Beyond the line was solid black nothingness. I stood there for a long time on that line. The sun felt so warm and good. My feet felt so secure on the solid sand. Mmmm….this is so nice, I'm never moving. Soon my neck started to burn from the sun. My legs and back started to ache from standing so still. I began to feel lonely with only my own thoughts and no one else to talk to. I looked down at the cool blackness in front of my feet. I could put one foot into it and see what happens, but I was stuck on the security of the brown, sunny, ground. Stuck and bored with the same scenery day after day, but too scared to plunge into the blackness beyond my toes and see what happens. I was standing at the edge of my comfort zone. Only by pushing past that line, could my life move forward.
This little scenario that took most of the floor postures to play out in my head, caused me to look around at all the places in my life I may be stuck standing at the edge of my comfort zone. There might've been something I wanted to share with my husband that would further our relationship and bring us closer, but I'm afraid of how he'd receive it. There may be something new I want to try, in the realm of art or writing that I just can't bring myself to do, because "What if I can't do it well?"There may be a huge project to be done on the house, but I'm too afraid to start it because it might be too big of an undertaking for me. There might be that new form of exercise I want to try, but what if it's beyond my strength? Or….there may be a relationship I need to come to terms with, but what if I end up getting hurt again? There might be things I need to let go of, but then my arms would be empty. The edge of my comfort zone exists in every aspect of my life….from doing that camel in yoga to the places where love touches my heart.
Being stuck and bored at the edge of my comfort zone places limits on my life and keeps me from experiencing all that's out there for me. What does it take to put a foot over that line? The three anchors: faith, hope, and love. I need to pray with faith that God will guide me through the darkness with each step and bring the light once again. I need to find the excitement of new beginnings in hope for the future. And finally, I need to accept that all the mistakes I've made, right or wrong, were because of love and I can't close my heart to love and trust and stand here sunburned and aching.
As I begin the second year of this blog, I am going to aspire to stepping over that edge, even if it's just one foot, every time the opportunity presents itself.
And so, as the toothpaste commercial says, "life opens up when you do", and …I have written.
~ I am once again sharing a photo that was given to me by a dear friend that illustrates what's in my heart today…
Great quote. Applies to me too!