What was your experience when you learned to
drive? Was it similar to when my daughters came of age? At that time, the
only option was to pay for lessons at a driving school.
But back “in the day,” growing up in a small rural
Wisconsin town, driver’s education was part of the high school curriculum.
That’s right. It was offered as a free class and taught by our science teacher.
Most of my classmates lived on farms where they’d
learned to handle a steering wheel, gas pedal, clutch, and breaks by driving
trucks and other motorized vehicles in non-populated areas. I grew up in town,
and I’d never sat behind the wheel of a car prior to taking that class.
Knowing that, my instructor had me first drive at a snail’s pace around and
around the school driveway in full view of other classmates and teachers who
were still on site after regular school hours.
Yeah … it was a bit embarrassing.
One I got my permit, my dad took me out on country
roads to practice. I’ll never forget his calm demeanor while he advised me to put a little more pressure
on the gas pedal while driving uphill to keep momentum, and less weight on the
pedal while traveling downhill to maintain my speed.
People who live in the Midwest experience harsh
winters with challenging road conditions. But when I moved to Seattle, I
discovered the primary danger during winter months wasn’t cruising along
on snowy roads. It was driving on hills—some winding and very steep—covered
with black ice. If you don’t keep just the right amount of force on the gas
pedal you’ll not only stop climbing, you’ll either end up in a ditch or slide
backwards all the way to the bottom of the hill.
Isn’t it the same way with pursuing our dreams?
If we don’t have much experience with what we want
to pursue, we may need to start out slow—even excruciatingly slow, despite our
eagerness to just get on with it!
When things get a little scary and we feel like
we’ve not only lost momentum, we’ve lost everything gained by our efforts, we
may need to reassess the situation and possibly find another route instead of
insisting on going in the same direction that has already failed. You’re
probably familiar with Albert Einstein’s definition of insanity—doing the same
thing over and over again, but expecting different results.”
We may also run into what seem like insurmountable challenges,
but if we just keep going and don’t give up—if we keep our foot on the gas
pedal—we’ll reach our destination.
What
about the journey you’re taking to reach your dreams? Are there areas in your
life right now where you may need to slow down, speed up, or change direction?
Dawn
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