Stepping through your life journey

I was out walking this week and came to a long steep set of steps, I have encountered them many a time as they are on a route I do often, but this time they seemed different.

No longer were they the steps to nowhere but they appeared to me, to be a journey. Each step representing a step in life, and it then occurred to me life is a serious of steps, mainly taking you on a journey up, but sometimes there are moments when you appear to standstill. We are born and grow and toddle our way to be children, every day and each year, learning and moving up the steps, occasionally there may be times when time stands still and you get stuck on a step. But at these times, you will always be learning something about you or where you want to go, you just may not see it. You can’t take a step backwards because you can’t go back in time, so you will only ever move on up or standstill.

Most of the time, you probably don’t think of your life as steps but you make a decision or have an idea and go up a step which takes you on another path with more steps.

There may be times when you feel things are at a standstill and you aren’t moving anywhere. It could be you are in a happy place and are content with your current journey. In which case, enjoy it, enjoy the status quo…at this stage you are still climbing steps, however, it will be at a slower pace.

This isn’t a bad place to be, you enjoy what you are doing, your life is in a wonderful place, things are going well for you. The ebb and flow of life.

Then there will be times when you are on a crazy, busy whirlwind of an adventure and your journey is going up the steps quicker than you can keep up. Change is happening and momentum is growing, and you are trying to match this pace, life will be throwing all things at you, it could be a new learning experience and new relationship, new job or promotion, family, new house, new baby, sickness, death, etc. Whatever it is causing you to climb those steps quicker than you can keep up, relax into it if you can, take the time to absorb what is happening and if you get a chance, try to reflect. Some people are great at doing this, going with the changes, soaking in the life lessons and not being afraid to jump up the steps two at a time if needed.

For others, it can be overwhelming and scary, it can cause us anxiety, worry and uncertainty as we go into the unknown when we were quite happy with life as it was. If this is you, take a moment to look at other times in your life when you have been amongst rapid change on your life journey. How did you deal with it then? What did you learn about yourself? Did you come out the other side happy/content/relieved/sad/feeling lost? These feelings, can be hard to deal with, nobody likes changes, we are very much creatures of habit. I can recommend the book ‘Who Moved My Cheese’ by Dr Spencer Johnson this is a great wee book that helps you to understand why change is great and why life can’t always be as it is.

Remember though, when you did reach a point on your step adventure where you could take a moment to breathe and enjoy life and your new ‘norm’ once again. Don’t be hard on yourself if you find it a struggle when life takes on a non stop ascent. This is your time to see what a wonderful, amazing and strong human being you are.

Of course, you could be stopped on a step with everyone else on their journey passing you by and you are ready for a new adventure. What is it you are missing in your life? What part of your life are you looking to change? Are you holding yourself back from change? Or are you waiting for an opportunity to come to you? Ask yourself these questions and answer honestly. Sometimes we can be jealous of someone who outwardly looks like they know where there life is taking them, but we don’t know how they are inwardly doing. Their life might seem like a great adventure for now. But did they want the adventure? Was it forced upon them and they have had to just deal with it. People always say not to judge someone until you have walked a mile in their shoes. It’s true, you don’t know everything about them. So let go of their journey and focus on climbing up your life steps.

There will be happy steps and sad steps throughout your life, ones where we struggle to move through and can’t see our way ahead due to life fog, making our stepping up a treacherous path, but the light will break through and you will move on up, like you are meant to, no matter how long it may take. On the flip side, you will have times when you are excited and in the moment and can’t get enough of your steps and just want to run up them as fast as you can. We all do this, we have all been there, so I would say, slow down and enjoy each and every step, savour it.

Your journey, your life adventure up those steps is for you to take alone. You may have people who support you and are with you all the time, but no one can do your journey for you. So embrace it and sieze all new adventures whether taken or given to you. Have fun, climb on up and enjoy learning and being you, as you do.

Have a beautiful week and look after you.

Love Emma 🤩

xx