An Ugly “Fall”…

Fall is such a special time when you live in a state where the leaves turn colors. We all anticipate the cool crisp air that makes you want to be outside, huddled around a campfire with friends with apple cider in one hand and a skewer in the other roasting marshmallows.   

The things that make Fall magical and special do not happen when it is 90 degrees out, Come On Oklahoma!!! It was so so hot today on my run on the Pathfinder. The leaves are all falling, but not in a beautiful mosaic of color, no, just in a yucky I was fried and fell off kind of fashion, we are having such an Ugly Fall!

As I ran today, I couldn’t really lift my eyes because there were leaves and debris all over the path, including lots of tree nuts in various sizes, these golf ball size nuts are a disaster waiting to happen.

If you recall, I have not had the best of luck with debris on my running trails. In the last few years, I have had two bad sprains from hitting a piece of bark and a golf ball-sized tree nut! I wrote about one of those sprains in my book Soul Work the chapter titled “Own Your Walk of Pain.” (read it at the link in the comments).

I am now trying to be very cautious when I am on a trail with debris, as a forty-one-year-old woman, I don’t want to go flying across the pavement again and hobble around for months trying to nurse an ankle.

When we are young there is an expectation that sometimes we make the same mistakes over and over. But with maturity should also come wisdom.

If someone is 40+ and continues to make the same mistake over and over, we might start labeling this person in a certain way… you might call them something like… stupid.

The grace from those around you might become weary and run short, as our stupidity usually has a dramatic effect on others too! We should learn, do things differently, and grow up!

It is so sad to watch full-grown adults stuck in patterns of redundant behaviors that are destructive to their lives and the lives of those around them. It is sad because my dears, we should learn our lessons and the lessons should CHANGE us.

I had to watch the ground so closely today when the leaves were so thick or where areas had lots of clutter. I even had to slow down and walk for a few moments when I just couldn’t take the risk. I realized that this simple adjustment was maturity and growth for me.

I have a tendency to not be “cautious”, I have more of an “everything will be fine” personality and I have now paid the price multiple times, not just while running but also in life!

I have repeatedly delt with consequences for moving TOO fast, not paying attention to the warning signs around me, bulldozing through when I should lessen my pace or move a bit slower.

There have been times when I should have asked more questions, given something time to breathe, taken in the journey, not just moved full speed ahead. I am learning to slow down or even stop and this is harder for me than going fast with all my heart.

So at 40+ I am going to learn, adapt, and change so that I don’t continue to repeat the SAME mistakes.

On the journey of discovery and growth everything can become our teacher, a tree-nut on a trail, a sprained ankle, feedback from a friend, your children, anything, yet one thing I want to draw our attention too, that should scream at us is PATTERNS.

We need to so carefully observe our patterns. When there is a pattern of behavior, or the same reaction, the same emotion, the same result over and over, STOP, take a step back and scrutinize your pattern. What are you doing that is getting you this same result?

I recently had a moment, where I had an emotional response that felt like déjà vu. I stopped and went to a friend and I talked it out with them and even gave them the freedom to speak truth, to show me what I am not seeing.

What I COULD see was I was in the SAME place again. So what do I need to do to get a different result?

My loves, I want to grow up! I want to grow up with you. I want to mature with grace and become all I was meant to be, and our patterns of behavior can keep us trapped, they can cause us to spin in circles instead of moving forward in life. The only way out of that cycle is to change the sequence, if you can change just one step in the sequence, you can disrupt the pattern.

I am with you on the journey, learning my lessons, changing things up, and expecting fewer and fewer “Ugly Falls.”

From My  Heart to Yours