One step at a time

I was walking with a friend the other day, ..it was a long walk and the long staircase to an overhead bridge was off in the distance. My inclination was...”elevator here I come.” And I am sure the expression on my face was longingly looking at the elevator, salvation in sight. Without any fanfare she quietly said, we are taking the stairs.... I groaned inwardly. As we approached the staircase, her advice was “Just look at the step in front of you. Don’t look up. One step at a time. Then the next one, and keep doing that ....and you will get to the top.” Sage advice. Not only did it work, Like DUH...but I experienced no muscle cramps or inner screams from my body or mind about the amount of steps I would have to take to get to the top.

It was good advice in the moment, not rocket science ...I get that...But a good reminder for walking, and for life. Because isn't that the truth? There is no other way to the other side, but taking one step at a time.

Interesting enough, one step at a time, one day, one moment, one second, one hour was how I had navigated the darkest / crappiest period of my life....to get through to the other side. I had no idea what, or where the other side was. In the moment, and in each moment after that, while in the moment, ...all I saw was a sea of mud, molasses thick, and for as far as my eyes could see waaaaaaay off in the distance ....more mud, molasses thick that I would have to walk through. (Lesson - We see what we want to see.) But what I instinctively knew was the only way to the other side was through. One step .. One day, one hour, one minute, one second at a time.

And then one day I was standing on the other side of that thing and with the benefit of hindsight, an awareness that I was, and if you’re reading this, we all have, got to the other side of so much stuff. Some of it we did not think we would get through. And we are mostly still standing...maybe more battle weary but still standing.

And so we begin...

This was the first step.