Through The Gate

"Still round the corner there may wait, a new road or a secret gate."

~J.R.R. Tolkien

Life's road twists and turns.

We never really know where it will lead exactly.
Our adventure is about the journey;
it's about the experience we have along the way.
And who we become because of it.

To follow our path requires trust.
Trust in the path and in ourselves.
Trust that our inner compass really points north.
Trust that our path really does lead somewhere,
even when it seems we're going in circles.

And trust that if we do indeed get lost,
that we can find our way.

There is not one road, but many,
and we get to choose which ones to travel.
It doesn't really matter which ones we choose,
each one will get us there.
Our path always contains some mysteries,
some surprises
and some challenges.

We must face and conquer our fears as they reveal themselves.
We must not grow too weary or give up,
but continue on,
step by step,
content in knowing
that each step we take gets us one step closer to where we are going
and who we are becoming.
And we are always becoming;

Hopefully, along our path we discover love.
For as Oliver Wendell Holmes put it,
"Love is the master key which opens the gates of happiness."
This love isn't found in others,
it's found in ourselves.
It's how we see.
It's how we learn to view the world around us.
How we view ourselves.

How we see the most ordinary, often overlooked details in life.
It's evident in how we learn to choose.
We know it when we experience it.
Without a doubt.
And we know we have the key to open the gate.

Then...we walk through the gate and choose another road.