Motion = Joy

You're here to face your fears, to grow, to move. Being stagnant in life comes from a basis of fear. As human beings, we are created to move and have motion. And we are created to grow and progress. That's what you're made for. That's why you're here. Moving and growing is what brings us true joy.

I saw this tiny little quote on Pinterest one day and IT STUCK WITH ME. It became my new motto. It's now what I say to help my kids step out of their comfort zones and dive into something new. The quote is, "Be brave enough to suck at something new". Wow. That's my goal in life. That's who I want to be and who I strive to be. Brave enough to suck. Seriously.

If you're afraid of what someone might think, stop. If you're intimidated of failure, don't be. If you are holding yourself back out of fear, break that thought right now. Be brave. Be bold. Step out of your box.

It could be anything from wanting to start a new business to learning how to play the ukulele. It could be a new hobby, a goal, an idea. Why let fear stop you? WHY BE STAGNANT? Let's move. Let's grow. Let's suck at something for a minute. Let's fail a couple times. Let's be in motion. And let's find joy while we're doing it.

In our family we like to call fear "The Red Slide". It all started at a water park when my children were young. My daughter did NOT want anything to do with the water slides. They were terrifying. They were new.

I talked with my daughter a few times to try the small red tube slide, and I told her it's slow, it only has one loop, and that it's gentle. I just new she would love it if she would just try it. But she would get nervous and immediately refuse anything to do with it.

Well we were at the water park for the most part of the day and she continued to stay as far away from it as possible. Then a cousin talked her into maybe trying it. She walked up the stairs with her cousin, they waited in line, and then she saw the water rushing down the dark tube and she panicked. The life guard began to get impatient with her as she struggled to decide what to do from here.

Now what happened next could've gone 2 different ways. My sister-in-law picked up my daughter, set her down in the slide, and nudged her right on down the tube. I could hear her hands squeaking the whole way down the edge of the tube. I was at the bottom waiting for her. I was nervous for her reaction. And then she came around the corner and out the slide with the biggest grin I ever saw on that face.

The red slide. We all have them. Sometimes that fear we face is just butterflies telling us it's going to be a great experience. Sometimes the fear is legitimate anxiety trying to protect us. Our brains are hardwired for fear. It's there, it's going to be there throughout our lives. We just have to make the choice to either be stagnant or to move.