Grasshoppers were leaping across my path with almost every step I took on this warm sunny fall day. It was fun to watch them, and I marveled at the power they seemed to achieve as they sailed through the air, legs clicking, traveling with speed and ease through the tall grasses.
I started to think how many times in my life I have wanted to leap from one thing to the next.
Most of these times were when I was somewhere that I didn’t want to be, and I imagined how glorious (I thought) it would be to be somewhere else. Like the time when I was in a job that was stressful and ill-suited for me, or the time when I was living in the middle of Chicago, and wanted to be in a quieter place. During those times, I really longed to leap.
But I would have been leaping to get out of somewhere I didn’t want to be, rather than moving towards somewhere I did want to be. I would have been leaping just to get somewhere else.
When I look back at all of those times of my life now, I realize how much of life I would have missed if I had leaped. Life had so much to show me and give me, in the journey. It’s a cliche, but it is very true for me. So much of becoming me was on the way from here to there.
While it is always tempting to think that everything would be easier if I could leap, I guess I am just not a leap-er. I’m a journey-er.
I’ve learned a lot about journeying over the years. About that initial stage where you know that something has to change, but you’re holding back, because it’s complicated, and the territory is unknown. And about packing, taking what you need and letting go the rest. And standing on the threshold, in that No Man’s Land of not being able to go back, but also not knowing quite where you are going. And all of that is before you even set off.
As I look at the grasshoppers, I’m a bit envious. It looks so easy, and I wonder how change can be easier in my own life. I don’t want to miss the journey, but it would be great to travel with a little more ease. There is definitely something I can learn from leaping.
Are you a leap-er or a journey-er? Where do you want to be?
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