Second Chances

Give and take second chances. Look for what fate hurls back into your life. Look to the events that conspired to bring you back to something you thought lost forever.  What you do in these moments will make all the difference. Explore the possibilities. 
~J.V. Manning

"Life is not a dress rehearsal." "You only get one shot at this life." "Y.O.L.O. - You Only Live Once."

Well, no kidding. I really had no idea.
(I wish there was a font for sarcasm)

I am always seeing quotes along these lines and while I get the intent behind them, it's a lot of pressure to get everything right the first time. Pressure to not make mistakes, take a wrong path or make a bad decision. My life to this point is a culmination of my successes, yes. But, it is also a culmination of my mistakes, as well. Because, I simply wouldn't be where I am today without either. Right? If you don't make mistakes, don't fall flat on your face or have to stick your foot in your mouth on occasion, are you living at all? No. You're playing it safe. You're floating through your days and the only mark you shall leave in your wake is a slight ripple from passing by.

I have been thinking a lot lately about second chances. About doing something now that I was too afraid to do way back when. About taking a journey down roads that I did not have the courage to when they appeared the first time. About letting people back into my world who hurt me once upon a time. Call it a "Risk Assessment" of my life up to this point. My ponderings lately have lead me to one very solid conclusion... I am very adept at playing it safe. Very adept. Too adept. I am starting to feel like the Lion in the Wizard of Oz. Apparently, I need courage. 

Who knew?

Courage to give missed chances another go. Courage to open doors on situations I had closed with solid finality at one time. Courage to look at all the chances I didn't take when I had the chance, and hope like hell I can do something about it now. Courage to go back to situations I handled badly the first time around and try to make it right. Courage to let certain people back into my life because I know they belong in it.

I never used to believe in second chances for myself and only believed in second chances for others on a case by case basis. Certain things in life that where a deal breaker for me when I was younger, now aren't nearly as important as I thought they were. Like giving people another chance and letting the past go. Knowing and appreciating that I am not the only one who has made mistakes and if I am to cut myself some slack, there are some I must do the same for, as well. Also, it is knowing that just because something didn't work out in the past, doesn't mean it wasn't meant to be. It just means that the timing was off and I need to take that into account. Maybe it was supposed to happen later in my life. Maybe when the opportunity arose back in the day it just wasn't in the stars at that particular moment. Completely writing it off now seems silly. What if the timing is right now, where it wasn't the first time? Do I want to let it go again? Do I want to live with the regret of never taking the chance?

There are so many chances I will never get again. Another chance with my mom. Another chance to talk to a friend who died recently. Another chance to open a few doors I chained closed when I was younger. Another shot at a job in Boston I should have taken when I had the chance. Moments I will never get back because I was either too stubborn, afraid or hurt to see through to the other side of the situation. It is within these lost chances I find the beauty in second chances. It is within these lost chances I finally understand the lesson. 

Every single day we are alive is a second chance to get it right. Every single day is a chance to fix what is broken in our worlds. To see what is lacking, empty and unhappy and make it better. To take leaps of faith, to reach out to people we loved and lost for whatever reason. To open doors we have closed, break down walls we have built and find our courage to live life not as a dress rehearsal but as it was meant to be lived and experienced – fully, honestly, courageously and filled with love. Each moment we have on this earth is a chance to do what you dream of. To find what you love and hold on to it. To trust that while not everything will work out, at least you had the courage to try. To know that at the end of your days, when you look back, you will see all the chances you took, lessons you learned from them and all the amazing things that worked out because you just took that chance.

Tomorrow is guaranteed to no one. Take second, third and fourth chances while you can. Find your courage. Find what makes your heart race and soul shine. Look to where your thoughts go when they wander. Follow roads you didn't take the first time and simply see where they lead. Don't shut down the possibilities because of fear. Own your mistakes and do something to make them right. Take the chance to say something you have held onto for far too long. Take that damn trip you keep putting off. Take a chance to change your life every time you can. They won't all work out. But some will. Some will work out in ways you never imagined. And never would have experienced if you hadn't given it... a second chance.

Y.O.L.O - Still makes me cringe to write but the truth is there.

You only live once. Give and take second chances. Look for what fate hurls back into your life. Look to the events that conspired to bring you back to something you thought lost forever.What you do in these moments will make all the difference.

Explore the possibilities. 

---