This page is different because there are signs and events that lead us to the crossroads. Whether forced to the crossroads by an event we did not see coming or whether we are standing at the junction because we made choices that led us here….the crossroads are universal. We all get here, maybe kicking and screaming, but here we are.
Events and choices us bring us to the crossroads. Things like divorce, a death in the family, a major career change (whether forced or not), illness, our children, religious upheaval, an empty nest, and even the proverbial mid-life crisis.
Depending on the circumstances, these signs may have been there for a while. You may have made a pros and cons list, you may be very familiar with the “sign” and just not know what to do yet. Decisions are scary.
But there are times when something happens, it’s sudden, and it throws you off balance and you find yourself unexpectedly at a crossroads.
The Crossroads.
We are here. We can stand here, for years maybe, but eventually we have to make a choice. We look in each direction. We see where we came from, we look to the left and to the right and down the road in front of us. We have a choice now.
I don’t know about you, but I wallowed in self-pity at a few crossroads I found myself at. Why me? What did I do to get here? Why didn’t I apply for that job? Or why did I quit working there, the person I trained just got the job opening I was told I’d never get?
It’s easy to stay stuck. But once you make a choice and head down a path, there are benefits that come your way. For me it was a burgeoning sense of self-acceptance. I make the choice to take care of myself. Moving in a direction of my choosing gave me self-esteem. And finally, once I made a choice I was on my way to self-discovery. I did things I never thought possible.
Have I been back to the crossroads again and again? Yes! But I learn more about myself every single time. And that makes the journey worth it.
I shall be telling this with a sigh. Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.
~The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost