The Risk

Sometimes, living hurts.

The more we open up, the more vulnerable we are to that hurt.

But we don’t have to open.

We are perfectly entitled to remain closed.

The choice is ours.

Maybe you know someone who has an excellent turtle shell they can deploy for protection.

Who can blame them for utilizing such a tool?

They’ve built a defense that provides maximum protection from the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune.

You can’t get your heart broken if you don't take it out for a walk.

Perhaps it is perfectly acceptable to keep your heart secured away, safe in its shell.

Are you saying, “Yes! Sign me up for that please.”

Or, are you curious about the alternative?

What does the other side of the street look like?

You probably know someone who lives daringly, with their heart on their sleeve.

Unintimidated by the hurt and pain and loss that will surely come their way, they approach life undaunted.

Starting up conversations with strangers, laughing deeply and often, crying perhaps just as much, they put themselves out there.

By opening up, they surely invite the hurt into their lives and probably get let down more often. Is it worth it?

Perhaps we cannot shield ourselves from the outrageous arrows without also shielding ourselves from the outrageous joy.

Maybe we miss out if we stay too long in our self-made cocoon.

Maybe we get hurt too often if we always throw caution to the wind.

We all have a choice to make.

We can safely turtle.

Or we can take the leap.

I reckon we risk something either way.

We risk missing out or we risk getting hurt.

I’m not going to say which we should do.

I just want you to know - you have a choice.

And no one can make it for you.

Will you turtle 

or 

will you leap?

The decision is made,

Every moment.