CONNECTIONS AND VULNERABILITY

‘You’re doing so well’ I heard her say as I turned down the volume on my phone and took out one ear piece of my headphones. I must have looked a bit puzzled so my neighbour repeated herself and then added ‘…how often you work out’.

The moment was brief as we passed each other on the walkway in between apartment buildings and still I cannot recall what my reply was to her. Perhaps something along the lines of my trying my best. I was lost in moments of thought and the struggle to simply get out of the door was a challenge. But I remembered why I needed to do this as strengthening my body would help strengthen my mind.

After hearing those words, I started to feel slightly better about taking the necessary step to continue my evening routine. Last night it was not possible to go on my run as I had to wait for the maintenance guy to drive all the way from Liberty Hill to fix the broken air conditioner unit. Again. This time it was the capacitor which did not take too long to repair but it was already dark by the time he arrived.

As I continued on my walk to get to the school and run on the track, I used that time to think about that brief encounter with the neighbour and how it relates to both a book I am reading and something someone recently said to me. The comment was ‘we all need somebody’ and at the time I was reluctant to agree. However, after reading the first two chapters of Brené Brown’s ‘Daring Greatly’, I am starting to see truth in that statement.

The book talks about vulnerability and getting out of our comfort zone and into the world of human connections where we dare to bear ourselves regardless of the consequences. Being vulnerable takes courage and curiosity is what keeps us going. That desire to know what the next chapter will be in our story of life. Wondering if the path we choose next will bring us closer to knowing the answer to ‘why am I here’.

Sometimes life has a different path for us to take. Sometimes we need to stay on the current path until we find a better way to take that detour. It might not be the ideal course but it will keep us afloat and buy us time until we examine what it will take to make it happen.

The question left to answer is what is your passion? What drives you to seek connections, to be vulnerable, to write that next chapter of your life? The journey is not one to take alone but requires the interaction of many just as in an orchestra where the resulting piece of music is the work of everyone working together to present a beautiful work of sound.