A little lost...

I'm going back to work part-time after a two year hiatus.
While this is both exciting and terrifying I can't help but feeling a little lost.

I have come to the conclusion that although life is a journey, there are many paths. And just because you start down one, does not mean that you will finish down that same path. The path starts out promising with a cool breeze and pleasant wildflowers to look at. There is a harmonious drone from the insect inhabitants that fills the
air.
We walk along until we come to a fork in the road and choose to go one way that promises new adventures. Maybe a river, or an old forest grove.
But sometimes the path we wish to travel has a big "Road Closed" sign on it. Maybe there was a mudslide and we can no longer pass, so we must choose the other, even though we are powerless that the decision has been made for us.

Sometimes, when we think we are progressing down a path and just when it looks like we are headed somewhere very interesting and exciting, we are disappointed, only to find that instead, the path has looped around and you are left standing in the exact same spot you were in an hour ago. Was it really such a waste of time?
We also meet people on the path. Some people are friendly, some keep to themselves. We say hello and goodbye...and then sometimes hello again. Once in awhile we might find that we are walking along the same path for awhile but then are disappointed when we separate, only to walk once again, at our solitary pace. How challenging the path can be.
And just when we are panting up a big hill and are about ready to give up and throw in the towel, we persist. We have to in order to survive. We are left sweaty, and sore, but when we get to the top, we are sometimes able to look down and find peace at what we have accomplished.

We can now be looking down into a valley which had many turns and twists, hills, mud, butterflies and beauty.
We are in awe because we are here. We are in awe because we are present.
We live in the moment because it is just that; a moment. To be here one instant, and then gone the next.
We take what we can get and leave behind a piece of ourselves.
We are just as a part of the path as the path is a part of ourselves.

I like hiking and journeys and paths. Sometimes I bitch and moan and just complain, but when I stop for a second to see how far I come, it is then that I feel satisfied.

Where are YOU?

And what's ahead of YOU?

Because regardless of where you end up, there will always be something ahead of you.