New School Year: Lessons from a Middle Schooler

Today is the first day of school in Michigan and I am the new mom to a Middle Schooler!.  Time has flown so quickly.  It seems like just yesterday that I was holding him in the rocking chair in his room.  I remember looking at his little legs and thinking to myself, “some day his legs will hang over mine when he sits on my lap.  I can’t even imagine it.”  And now here we are, it’s been years since he’s spent any time on my lap.  His legs would almost hit the ground, all in the blink of an eye.  Where has the time gone? 

I watch with amazement as he heads off to Middle School with nothing more than anticipation.  Hallways to maneuver, new school, way more kids, lockers and classes to find.   His elementary school is nothing more than a fond memory and he is ready to move on. I am so proud of him today!

Wouldn’t it be great if we could move into new territory as easily as adults?  It seems by the time we are grown that we add so many layers of stress and worry to any new situation.  We want to know what to expect, what it will be like, fear failure, worry about what people will think.  We put barriers and boundaries around ourselves, make excuses and tell ourselves that they are truth all in an effort to avoid the discomfort of change.

We hold on to our past, to what we know, with a death grip.  What if the thing you are holding onto is stopping you from finding something even better?   Letting go of what we know often must be part of the process of moving on. 

When I’m making a big decision I always picture myself at the edge of a field, the line between the known and the new.  I ask my clients to do the same.  Part of what I’m walking into is unknown but the possibilities are expansive.  When you get to that edge it just takes one step to enter and begin a new journey.  Often we sit right on the edge for weeks, teetering between the two afraid to take that final step.  Sometimes we sit there for a lifetime and never take the chance. 

That feeling of unease always tells me that the choice to stay where I am is not the right one. The decision is pending because I need to make a move.  I can not feel content where I am.  Only fear is stopping me from taking the final step.  Fear will make your life smaller and smaller if you let it.  Will keep you out of the open field where more and more is possible. 

Are you at a tipping point in your life?   What fears are stopping you in your tracks at the edge of what could be an amazing adventure? What are those feelings of discontent trying to tell you?  Take a lesson from my 11 year old.  Think back fondly as you move forward enthusiastically.

You were born for greatness as we all are.  Bust through that fear and take a stand for being who you were born to be and doing what you were born to do!