Have you ever considered this?
You might be the one
Standing in your own way.
Maybe all of the things
You want most in life:
The friendships, the goals,
The fulfillment you chase,
Are behind that one door
That you’re afraid to open.
The knock you’re afraid to answer.
You have all sorts of thoughts,
Supposedly smart,
About people you’ve met before
Who come from there.
They are fake, unfriendly, shallow.
But those people aren’t Him.
And you know it.
You’ve thought about this.
I know you have.
You think too much
And act too little.
It’s like you’re on a train.
You sit and think and think
about whether or not
this is your stop,
until the door is closed
and that station is passed.
Then you think about regret,
Think so much
About the last station—
What could have been—
That you miss your next chance.
Change the order.
For once in your life,
Just get up and go.
Step off the train,
Even if you aren’t ready.
Step out on the platform,
Even if you aren’t sure
What you’ll do when you get there.
The what ifs
Are more dangerous
Than the what is.
And don’t get tangled up
In those what abouts…
What about people who
Might ruin their lives
By using this advice?
What about someone
Who might misunderstand,
Do something stupid with it?
What about them?
They aren’t in this conversation.
You don’t speak for them.
And, by the way,
You’re making an excuse—
Don’t huff and puff;
You know it’s true!
You have a place to be
And you’re wasting something
You’ll never get back—time.
Tag: making mistakes
To the Young One Afraid to Make Mistakes
We all have weaknesses,
So freely acknowledge your flaws.
And guess what? You’re going to shatter some china.
Over time, lots. And that’s okay.
Be able to admit your mistakes,
But don’t just plop down there,
Wallowing in regret.
Get up. Ask for forgiveness.
Forgive yourself, too.
And forgive others who had a hand in your fall.
It’ll take courage, but I hope you come to learn this:
We cannot survive together while keeping score.
We cannot survive, either, keeping score against ourselves.
Of course, you know this isn’t free rein
To do things you shouldn’t—
Any little thing you want,
To fall into weakness,
Or laziness,
To make every thoughtless mistake,
To hurt other people
And elevate yourself,
To avoid consequences—
Certainly not.
But I know you;
You won’t dwell there;
You heard that part loud and clear.
What you need is Confidence.
Confidence is respecting others and yourself,
Knowing you both have great value (yes, you too).
Confidence is bravely setting your boundaries,
And standing firm when they are challenged by crooks.
Confidence is being thoughtful and wise,
Then making clear choices without dodging shards of guilt.
Confidence is allowing yourself healthy emotions,
Not canning them to meet others’ expectation.
Confidence is being honest and kind:
In how you think; in how you live; in how you treat yourself.
Confidence is embracing you calling,
even when you aren’t good at it…yet.
Don’t skim over this!
Don’t shelve it,
Saying you’ll come back later—
When you’re better prepared,
More mature.
You’ll come back—
When you have time to do it justice.
You won’t.
Dig in now.
Let it really sink in. Digest it.
Practice. Give yourself grace. Practice more.
Believe me, you won’t regret it.
Learn this one, and you’ll really go places.
Angela Writes... 