leaping.

Do you ever put yourself out there and end up getting burned for it?



I know I do.


Actually, it is my personal preference to only associate with people who are willing to put themselves out there. For what is mostly irrelevant, but the willingness to make a figurative leap is non-negotiable. We're not talking about blindly jumping off emotional cliffs like lemmings, so much as having something deep down that makes you tick, that matters enough that when it comes down to it, you'll put yourself out there for it.  The more people I meet, the rarer a trait I find this to be; people like to keep their heads down with the rest of the herd it seems.


My friends and I joke about it sometimes, that feeling we all crave. "Let's get all hopped up on whiskey and take some risks!"


But really, it's not just the liquid courage or the laughter or the foolishness in behavior that usually comes with finding your niche; it's something hidden from the surface that has to be felt to be believed in.



It's having something you care about enough to take a leap of faith and the willingness to suffer the consequences- whether it be financial, a falter in stride, humiliation, heart break.



The leap that forces pride, despite most of our strongest instincts, into the back seat. It's passion, it's the glint in your eye, it's a constant and insatiable hunger for whatever it is that keeps you up nights.


It's always wanting more.


I was just thinking about the leap. I've always really liked the feeling right after, sort of a free fall before the result reveals itself, the euphoric knowledge that you found it within yourself to jump anyway, regardless of what happens. No one can take that away.


Getting to the jump though, standing on the mental ledge and forcing yourself off, that's the hard part.


In truth, it's almost never only about the outcome for me, which I know is a little hard to believe, but I've given this a great deal of thought and, at least for me, it's really true. Even when the end result doesn't pan out to my advantage and I'm thrown off course or worse, I'm still just about always glad to have taken the leap, to have risked, to have had enough passion coursing through my veins that I was willing to have things go either way just to know how the cards would fall. That's doesn't mean it's easy, though.


Knowing the result, that's the payoff.


But taking that leap of faith, sending that letter bursting with emotion or moving to that city on a whim, that's proof that you're still more than just alive, it shows you're engaging, that you're living. It's a way to finally clear the air or an opportunity to fall on your face and lose all your money, but maybe you at least discovered some good restaurants along the way- as I found out first hand in both cases.

Anyway, I'm working on taking some leaps here coming up. I'm inching up to the ledge and looking down. I know I'll jump, and though I don't know exactly what will happen, I know there will be results both good and bad.  I also know, without a doubt, that I'll be glad I took the chance instead of standing in place.


Cheers to the feeling of your stomach falling through your feet, and cheers to finding a soft spot to land.