You Can Always Start Over

This evening my buddy and I were talking about life. It was no pity party; we were simply moaning about the difficult decisions we have to make on this beautiful journey called life. Decisions about what to study, if we should study further, where to live, who to date, who to cut out of our lives... the list goes on. The choices we have to make in life are endless, and this got me thinking about where the wrong choices lead. Wrong choices can sometimes lead to a dead end where the only way out is to reverse and try another route, and this is what many of us find difficult. 

I have come to realize that living is like being in a theme park filled with rides that can shoot your adrenaline levels off the charts. Some rides are simply fun, some are downright scary, while some are a combination of both. In order to get your money's worth, chances are you will try different rides in the three different categories, right? That's the attitude you should have towards life. I have watched children very often at theme parks and admired their excitement for a new ride even though the last one they just got off was scary enough to send an adult like me into a heart attack. In spite of the fear, and perhaps unpleasantness of the previous ride, there are people who are often willing to go on another ride and start over. 

You must understand that your journey in life may not always be pleasant; as a matter of fact, it may be simply scary and not fun by any stretch of the imagination, but understand that the ride will come to an end, and you don't have to sit in a corner and relive how terrifying it was. You can start over on a different ride and enjoy it to the best of your ability. So you've made horrifying mistakes, who hasn't? Many successful people may like to have you believe they have everything together and have never stepped out of line, but that's not true. It is impossible to live a life of impact without making any mistakes. Understand that your mistakes are not there to define you, they are there to mould you and teach you the necessary lessons. 

You can always start over in life. You can always redefine yourself instead of letting the ride you're on define you. Don't be crippled by the fear of not matching up to your friends if you reverse and take another route. Don't be worried about what may seem like shame simply because you made an error in judgement. Without these mistakes, you'll simply be alive, but not living. Mistakes are part of the core of your existence, so you can have an impact on those you come across in life. Starting over is tough, no doubt about that. Sometimes, it may be easier to sit at a dead end and pretend that's what you want, and you might even be able to fool all the people around you into thinking you're forging a way through this dead end. But it will be more fulfilling to retrace your steps, learn all your lessons and start over on another route. XOXO