Embracing Life

In 28 years of my life, I have walked through moments of pure joy, intense grief, tremendous successes, and equally tragic let downs.  But through every bit of it, I grow.  I learn more and more about who I am, what I want out of life, and how to approach the world around me and the people in it.  I don't believe in the idea that "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger".  Like the lemons that life hands us are an attempt to break us down and if we can just "weather the storm" we'll be better for it.  What happens if after a tragedy or a let down, we feel broken?  That phrase has never made me feel better about bad things happening in my life.  It makes me feel like I'm teetering on the edge of "not surviving"!

I prefer to view life as an ever changing symphony (I'm a musician...).  We all have a part to play and even one missing part changes the entire thing completely.  Things change while others stay the same.  Sometimes one section or one person gets featured while the rest of us are "supporting roles".  At other times, we get a solo and everyone else relies upon us to soar through that with grace and ease.  When we make a mistake, we can't just walk out.  We have to take a note of what we did wrong...where we stumbled, and make it better the next time we come across it!

Just like a musician is always striving for the perfect performance, so are we always striving for perfection in our own lives.  This can be helpful or hurtful, but it's all about how you handle that pursuit of perfection that defines who you are. Do you beat yourself up when you mess up? 

 Do you take road blocks in stride?  Do you relish in victory?

For me, it has been the most difficult times in my journey that the most people have watched me to see what I do next.  Let's face it, dealing with difficulties is not a strong suit of the human race!  I have to remember that when I face discord, the outcome is not always just about me.  It is about the woman who hears my story, the student who looks to me for answers, the reader who has a similar story. And if I just "roll over and play dead", not only am I but they too are worse for the wear.  So I spend my time trying to find the silver lining in bad situations and soaking up all the joy in the good ones.  We learn as we go along.  We each play an important, unmistakeable, and pivotal role.  And it is EXPERIENCE which makes us stronger...

My blog, Caribbean Daydreaming is about my experiences during a life altering time in my journey.  My husband is attending medical school in the Caribbean, and I have gone from living in the perfect little suburban home in the states and teaching middle school, to living in an apartment on a tropical island while being a housewife.  There are ups and downs and LOTS of crazy stories in between!