Your Life, Your Rules

It’s a quiet Sunday afternoon – the clouds are dark and the chill in the air is making me want to take a nap. This week’s travel was definitely one for the books – two days of canceled late-night flights, three days of delayed ones. I saw O’Hare airport and sat in the Admiral’s lounge every single day this week. After the second flight was canceled, I was ready to call it a week on travel. And yet, my persistent nature would not let me rest until I got to my destination. The universe was trying to control my week and I wasn’t going to let it happen. Instead of a series of meetings set to start on Monday, I arrived on Thursday morning and accomplished the same in two days. I still can’t believe I got it all done.

Makes me think about my life these days. I’m in a constant sea of chaos, continuously floating across the water, always moving, slowing down only to catch my breath. Most of the changes are a result of my own doing; they stem from my need to just keep going.

There’s been nothing constant in my life but change.

If you ask me why I do this to myself, it’s because loss has taught me much about the brevity of life. Most often, the doors that open do so all but once. It’s always been a right place, right time kind of thing. Believe me, there were things I’d prayed for, cried for, begged for, that never became mine. And then there are the perfectly timed rush of offers, of good things, of challenges and benefits, potential successes and failures that you realize are just meant to be.

Like finding the perfect home for you one year too early.

And putting your home on the market after 18 years.

Or accepting a bigger role when you thought you already had the biggest role.

And those projects you’ve always wanted to be a part of that will help you make a difference in this world. The ones that put your words to work, solidifies them with action.

Releasing a book. Or two.

The universe will always throw you in for a loop. But if you live a life that does not fear change, a life that persists through delays and cancelations, the end game will always be your call. You’ll be living a life that only you are responsible for, a quest that only you control. No matter the setback, no matter the outcome – if you grab that bull by the horns, close your eyes and ride –

It will be your life, your rules, your legacy.