Thoughts on stories: I ADORE them. I love writing them. I love seeing them play out in my life & in others’. Remember those Choose-Your-Own-Adventure books? They were my FAVES. I was the master of my choices, & I could decide the outcome of any given scenario. Endings I didn’t like, I learned from & made better choices the next time, creating outcomes I did like. Real life would work the same, right? I actually do believe we have the power to choose, be, do, & create what we want. We are THAT powerful, & we have the ability to effect change, not only in ourselves, but the world around us. Everything is a choice that results in an outcome. We choose to rise above circumstances or stay within limitations. We choose to ignore how we feel or face what we fear. My kids have been taught that the harder choice is usually the right one... Except...what about when it doesn’t work? What happens when we choose, try, believe, keep pushing, & the result isn’t what we want? My way is usually to just try even harder, be better, learn more...to never give up....until realizing I was missing another option, just as powerful, if not more. Turns out, for me, it’s in the surrender that the story opens up. Turns out, there’s something about pausing & simply breathing that can change the outcome. So much of life I can’t see or understand...paths I can’t find....options I can’t force. Who knew the power in just pausing & listening? What if I exhale? What if I rest? What if I can just be still..... It’s still my story, & I’m still in charge of the choices I make that create the outcomes I desire. I can still effect change & do and be all the things. But...this surrender part, where I let go of the striving and pressure to always get it right...where I choose to pause & listen to my own heart, where I let God whisper which way to turn next....where I choose to stop & truly rest: it’s the choice I never saw before, & it’s changing the entire story..... I like where this is going....