Wise Words For My Younger Self

Lately I've been struck with how fast time flies.

And how I don't look as young as I used to.

Care-free and 20-something 

The other  night our little family watched old videos. Little snippets of all our lives flashed before my eyes. Our engagement. Wedding day. Birth of our first born, second and then third. Smiles. Tears. And every thing in between. 

All of those moments of our lives make up the dash. That small piece of punctuation that is put on funeral programs and headstones to mark the time between our birth and death. 

Looking back, the dash goes by fast. 

Seems like my 20s were just a few years ago. But they stretch back farther than I care to admit. It was 12 years ago that I said "I do" and joined my life up with the man who would become the father of our three children. Everything was shiny and new. Coffee maker, sheets and furniture purchased to complete our home together were all unused and pristine.

Today, most of those items need to be replaced or have been replaced. We blinked and time sped by. In 10 more years, our oldest child will be the age that I thought was just  few years ago.

This dash I'm living is moving faster than I'm comfortable with and I think about what I would tell my younger self if I could.

I'd tell her: Do it!

Do every single thing you want to do. The thing you're fearful of. The thing you think you aren't equipped to do.

Just do it.

Do it afraid.

Do it even though you aren't as well-versed as you want to be.

Do it when you think there's not enough money.

Do it when you think you're not pretty enough....

or smart enough....

or wise enough.

Just do it.

Tell that girl or that guy that you like them. Or love them. Do the thing that's been stirring in your heart for years.

Do it alone if you have to.

But just do it.

These are the same words that I'll pass along to my children.

Life is too short to play it safe.

What's the one thing that you need to just do?