The hike

My family and I love hiking and exploring nature. There are always new things to see, new things to learn and discover. One of the trails we like to explore goes down to a valley and in the bottom there's a small creek. Well, we'd seen in the map that there's a creek, but hadn't seen the creek yet. The reason why is that it's a long trail, downhill, and most of the times we think that we've gone far enough and turn around and go back. We get tired or bored or unmotivated. We do have to go back up, so we just turn around. Sometimes we take a small loop that takes us back to the trail. Many times we look farther down and wonder what's behind the next curve, or what's past that big tree, or how close we are to the creek, but never take the time and effort to make it all the way down.

Deciding to live a healthier and simple life is like hiking that trail. We have a goal and know that it will be a good thing in the end, but it takes too much effort and we easily turn around and go back. We wonder what's on the other side of the curve, and what's past this one small change, but never make it all the way. We get too tired, too unmotivated, too pressed for time, or simply think it's not worth all the effort. Maybe we'll take this little loop so we can feel a little better about it, but in the end we just go back to the same place and to the same old habits. Nothing new, nothing better.

This past week, my husband and our son went down the trail. I was tired and stayed home. They had lots of fun exploring, following moose and fox tracks, and going around the little loop. But then they wondered, once again, what was past that next curve and decided to continue down. They kept hiking for a while knowing that at 5 p.m. they would turn around and go back. A little further down they noticed the ground leveled out. A few more steps the trail stopped and went either right or left. They had reached the end of the trail and sure enough, just a little further they saw it: the creek! It was 4:59 p.m. My son let out big chants of victory shouting loud "We did it!! We did it!!" It was so exciting! After hiking that trail so many times, they had finally reached their goal. How cool was that?! They explored the creek for a bit before returning home.

Living a better life truly comes down to our choices. I listened to a lady on the radio yesterday saying that at 400 lbs she had had enough! She was on blood pressure medications, cholesterol medications, and thought that she probably had diabetes. But it was time to change and she shared on the radio her plan to live a better life. In the end it will be so worth it! It takes work, patience, and perseverance, but done well you can even enjoy the hike there exploring and learning new things about the world we live in and about the person you are. Sometimes learning about others too or maybe even following their tracks for a while. When you get there, you'll be so excited I know you'll be shouting big chants of victory! The creek will be beautiful! 

That day I was too tired to join in on the hike, but seeing how excited they were for reaching their goal, I can't wait to go down myself so I can also sing victory! Surround yourself with people who will motivate you in your goal for a better life, people who have been there and who can tell you how worth it it is. It may be someone you know, but even online support can be great!

Unlike our trail, you won't have to go back. No going back to the old life and old habits. You can stay and explore the creek for a while and then turn either right or left, walking a new trail, making new decisions, improving your life even more. After all, God promised abundant life. I believe that's never staying where we are for a long time, but always walking towards more and better.  

Start on the trail for a better life today and go all the way!