Echoes.

“Mistakes are part of being human.  Appreciate your mistakes for what they are:  precious life lessons that can only be learned the hard way.  Unless it’s a fatal mistake, which at least others can learn from.”

- Al Franken, “Oh, the Things I Know”, 2002

***

Okay, let’s get right down to it.  God grants us this one life, which we fill with dreams and hopes and expectations.
Sometimes we aim for high goals and reach them.
Sometimes we fall on our knees, feeling a bit stupid for having even tried.

The trick of the matter is that we DID try.  That we DID hope.  DID dream.
And that we continue to do so.
That’s what makes us human.

Those of you that know me know that I make BIG mistakes.
Never one to do anything small, to keep anything unnoticeable, I make sure that every time I fall I land with a THUMP!
But also, that every time I stand I do so with a creak in the knees and a yelp of success.

Because mistakes are a part of self-discovery.
Every time I fall I learn more about what I can do, what I want to do, and what I will not do again.
I’ve said “I will never” plenty of times in my life only to eat crow later.  I still do, and I’m sure there is a healthy helping of crow in my future. 

The things that I have done in my life that I have regrets over – they do not DEFINE me.
Instead, they have changed me, made me better, helped me learn about myself and about others, helped me learn to accept myself, helped me grow in my faith and have helped me learn about avoiding judgment calls on other people.
The mistakes I’ve made in my life – and some have been BIG, I tell you – have taught me about life and love.

Because we, as humans, are harder on ourselves than on anyone else, keeping our mistakes in perspective takes a lot of work.
It’s a constant work in progress.

But, I have good news for you.
It’s the season for learning about life and love and forgiveness.
And people should start with forgiving themselves.
I know I’m working on my warts and worries.

Because you see, that’s what it’s all about.
Falling, standing up again, and keeping a more careful eye on where you place your feet from then on.

That’s it.
That’s the secret.
And if someone like me can try it, heck.  So can you.
I promise.