The Wall

Its covered with vines. There's no way to tell if they could hold my weight, but what option do I have? The slapping of rubber soles on the cement grows louder and louder. Taking a deep breath I jump up.

Its strange the things that run through your head in heat of the moment.

Concentrate.

Concentrate.

Think of where your foot can find a hold. Save your attention for looking for the thickest vine, not if you turned the coffee maker off. Its a hotel room. The maid will be in the room within an hour to turn it off any way. I suppose she'll also find... concentrate.

Concentrate.

You're almost there. These vines won't hold on much longer.

They've seen me. There's a shout. And another. They've found me. Two more feet. Just two more feet and I'll be up. A vine breaks out of my left hand, and the one my right foot is resting on too. I jump up with my left foot, grab the top of the wall with my left hand. I pull my body up and with out even looking what is on the other side, I jump. I land, well fall really, roll, and stand up.

Oh my....

What have I done?

I should have stayed on the other side and risked what the consequences would have been if caught.

I hear them chuckling on the other side. They know my mistake.

But maybe...




Okay. I've obviously been reading too many novels. :) But its the moment of making a crucial decision and the consequence of the decision made by the character of the story that draws us in, doesn't it? Maybe because a part inside of each of us wants to be in that place of having to choose the unknown and the excitement that is involved, but its so much easier to read about it than actually place ourselves in such a scary place, and have to live with whatever the consequences are once we've made that decision.

I have some very good friends who have taken that risk, just last Saturday. They're great friends and have always had my respect, but now they have raised a level in my mind. Now they are role models, examples to live my life like.

They sold their home, he left his job where he was well respected, where he had been given liberties to help grow the company, and where he was making enough that she, his wife, was able to comfortably stay home with their small son. Now they are somewhere between here (MN) and New York in a rental car going to meet their few boxes they shipped that are waiting at their one room apartment at the International House at Columbia University where they will live for two years while he gets his MBA. They have this crazy dream wrapped up in ambition and excitement that caused them to leave the comfortable life to possibly become something great. There's no guarantees that they will do great things as a result of this move, but they were sure they wouldn't do great things unless they did take an incredible step like this. Leaving all that's familiar to them- friends, family, the Midwest, income, to whatever might be on the other side of that wall.

Amazing.

I hope someday I'll have that kind of courage.