Leap and the Net Will Appear.

The simple card with the heartfelt note penned inside arrived in my mailbox a couple of years ago. Those six words spoke to me immediately. Sent by my two supportive and beautiful friends who had done the same thing a year before: they leapt, the net appeared and they created the life they wanted. 

Before the card arrived I was mired in uncertainty and wondering whether or not to trust a gut feeling that kept saying, ‘move to Austin…move to Austin’. I questioned whether or not I was running away or running to. All the while, that internal messaging continued, ’move to Austin…move to Austin’.

Clearly, I was at a crossroads. I had finally found the strength to end an almost 20-year marriage that had robbed me of my financial security and drained me of my energy and joy. My job was ending because my newly single boss had decided to close a highly successful business to start a dating service. A serious bike crash had rendered my body sensitive to freezing temperatures yet I was living in a culture where it was common to keep gloves, ice-scrapers and snow shovels in your car at least eight months a year.

Leap and the Net Will Appear. The black card with the white lettering sent from Cele and Ann arrived in my mailbox at exactly the right time and has been prominently displayed on my refrigerator door ever since. The words seemed to jump off the paper and lock proverbial arms with my internal voice…’move to Austin…move to Austin’. Without certainty of any details yet filled with more faith than fear, I took the leap. And sure enough, nets appeared. They appeared in the forms of old friends, new friends, family, strangers and vets. And familiar nets I had never before considered or fully appreciated in the form of pets and animals, nature, bikes and tennis rackets, music and fiddles, food and wine…and even cowboy boots.

During a time when I was leaning on my dear friends the most their message never wavered. They assured me that the leap may seem scary but the nets are there and you have to trust it. It’s ok to feel fear and it’s ok to do it anyway. Cele and Ann understood that and now so do I. Fear will be there lurking in the shadows and that’s ok but we can choose not to feed it, we can feed faith instead. And once you leap the first time, each subsequent leap is easier. Starve the fear, feed the faith…leap and keep leaping.

 My beautiful friends leapt from the cold, harsh Maine winters to warm,  sunny Florida where they thrive and laugh more than any two people I  have ever had the privilege to know. My visit with them was fun, restorative  and healing (just like the music Ann would send me). And as for me post  leap, oh yes…my joie de vivre has returned, my faith far larger than my  fear.

 

 

 

Thanks for reading,

~ Haven