Every once in a while you find yourself standing on a precipice staring down into a deep abyss of change. You may have a strong idea as to whether this change will ultimately be good or bad for you, but you can’t be sure, and that’s what’s terrifying about it. You may very well stand on that crumbling ledge for a long time. Some people are there for a lifetime. Agonizing. Second guessing themselves.
There are options. Leaping into that abyss isn’t always the best idea. Sometimes it’s better to back away from that precipice of change entirely, and focus instead on making the best of what you already have.
On the other hand, it may be that the best thing to do is to cross your arms, close your eyes, throw your head back and let yourself fall. It might kill you, or you might land in the most amazing place you’ve ever been. The whole experience might just be a hard lesson you need to learn on the way to the next change, or it might bring you joy that you never thought you’d encounter. Either way it’s the next step. It’s progress. It’s life.
So, step back and reevaluate or take that leap of faith? No one can make that decision for you. But either way, the answer is within you. On some level you already know that.
Just don’t stay on that ledge doing nothing. That’s a form of living death. That’s hell on earth. I don’t know how the abyss became a metaphor for hell. The abyss is just the unknown. Hell is the precipice. Hell is the hesitation. Do not linger there for long.
[Image credit: roughguides.com]
The View from a Drawbridge 
Celine Deon’s song “Taking Chances” says it all.
What do you say to taking chances?
What do you say to jumping off the edge?
Never knowing if there’s solid ground below
Or a hand to hold, or hell to pay
What do you say?
I say anything is better than standing on the ledge. 🙂
I think of all the times in my life where I didn’t believe enough in my self to rise to a challenge or take a new position or make a move, because I was afraid of the unknown. Then I think of the other times when I jumped in, jumped out and fell over myself to get someplace different from the place I was. Now I would jump, as high and as far and as fast as I could. The unknown is not something to fear, It is the light at the end of the tunnel. and while you may be fearful at first, if you embrace that fear, it will become your friend.
Well, yeah, but I’ve had the ground rush up to meet me and smack me in the face, too, so it’s still a gamble. More often than not, though, I agree with you.
Take the leap… but put on a parachute first… or a hang glider…
Good idea. Where were you before my last disastrous leap? Sigh.
Probably doing something even stupider.