52 Weeks of 2013 - Week 24

How many of us as adults live a life of adventure and taking risks and exploring and having fun?

How many adults do you know with scraped up knees? Even symbolically?

I attended a photography seminar last week that left my mind and emotions reeling as I try to process it all. Something awoke within me and resonated so deeply. I know it is part of the creative process. I know that it is something that God is stirring, I feel it in my spirit.

We all start out with that sense of adventure, we are made to explore and grow daily, these are major accomplishments. As a child you are not judged for how you look or sound, you are accepted and encouraged, you are a success.

Somehow in our growing up, many of us set aside what comes naturally, the things that excite us, we set aside dreams. Maybe it is because of a lack of confidence, or because of a sense of responsibility. The dream just doesn't seem possible and so, instead, we start to do what is easier, or seems logical or just achievable.

Is there still, deep inside of us, though, that child buried beneath the responsibility of adulthood? Do we ever really grow up or do we just adapt to the expectations of others? Of our society? We learn to stay within the lines, drawn by somebody else.

Do you ever just feel like a child disguised as an adult? Is there something inside waiting to break free? That others have pushed down? That maybe you have squashed?

What if there is more? What if we truly lived every day? Not just being a cog in the machine, but with a freedom and a purpose. To each day know that you made a difference in the life of somebody else, no matter how small. To know that you really connected and were feeling.

Most of you reading this are adults and we do have responsibilities. Don't get me wrong and abandon your kids to go live your adventure, but hear me when I say it is about our outlook and our motivation. Take a step back and re-evaluate what you are doing and why. Maybe it is time to make some changes, maybe it is time to re-visit an old dream or maybe you just need to give yourself permission to dream again?