Words To Live By

One night in high school my friend Jeff and I were contemplating life, which was something we did often. We called these nights “talking dates,” not because were were dating,
but because we were two friends who genuinely loved talking to each
other. A typical Saturday night meant we’d be at IHOP enjoying their endless supply of coffee and all-you-can-eat pancake specials, while discussing the latest gossip, our current crushes, the future and our hopes and dreams. I kid you not; we did this and it was awesome. 

On one particular night, close to graduation, we had a talking date similar to the dozens of other ones we’d shared over the course of four years, but this one was different. With the future we so longingly talked about getting closer and closer, and with all of our friends about to part ways and go to different colleges, fear of the unknown started to seep in; life up until then was pretty perfect for our group.

So that night, in between bites of pancake, we scribbled words on a paper napkin to help us cope with the next chapter in our lives:

Please don’t misunderstand; the “uncomfortable place” doesn’t mean going against our womanly intuition we get when something is about to go wrong—that vibe is there for a reason. It simply means that getting out of your comfort zone to experience something new can lead to great things like new friends, a great adventure, new sights, lasting memories, etc.

This leads me to one of my other favorite quotes that I’m almost embarrassed to say where it’s from (Mandy Moore’s character said it in Chasing Liberty):

“Sometimes the things you’re scared of are the most worthwhile.” 
~Chasing Liberty

There are so many other quotes I love, including several Bible verses that sometimes literally get me through life’s everyday moments, but I always come back to the one my friend and I made up a random night while eating pancakes.

Life is more fun when you take chances and actually experience life, and sometimes that means going with the flow and getting out of that perfectly nice comfort zone, don’t you think?!
 
 *linking up with Story of my Life‘s #blogeverydayinmay challenge

11 Comments

  1. This is wonderful and growing up I always heard my mother telling to just go with the flow. It drove me crazy but now as an adult I can see what she meant!

  2. Bah! I swear, this is like the third time this week that I've been indirectly told to go outside of my comfort zone. Probably a sign?

  3. Love this! I always try to push outside my comfort zone. I'm in the process right now of several different comfort zone moves at once!

  4. So, I love everything about this blog post! HAHA! I hope that's not being a creeper but… I totally have those "talking dates" with my friend, Cody, and they have taken place at iHop! I totally agree with you about the comfort zone, as well! And haha, I also totally own Chasing Liberty, too! We should be friends! Glad I came across your blog through the Blog Every Day in May Challenge! *bookmarking!!*

    http://www.chimerikal.com

  5. This is awesome and something I needed to hear… or read. And the post you linked too. With deployment on the horizon it is something I need to implement in my life. Thank you.

  6. Wow! Thanks for posting. This is something I've been dealing with right now and were the exact words I needed to hear. It's always "funny" to me how the right words come along right when you need to hear them!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.