Wednesday, November 13, 2013

"Detours are opportunities to experience new things."

Every once in a while a client will tell me about how he or she wanted to be one thing when they grew up but something happened and they are now in a different place.  Some times people feel like this makes them some type of "failure."

I recall a woman who was very bright who got accepted into a prestigious college right after high school.  She wanted to go to college very badly but there was a death in her family and she wound up staying at home to help out.  Every time she happened to be driving near the college she didn't attend she felt anxious and like a failure.

However, after exploring what her staying at home had meant to her family and to her she realized there was no other choice for her to make at the time.  In addition, her choice of family enriched the relationships around her.  Who knows what would have happened had she made another choice?  Her life made a detour, but ultimately she experienced a deeper connection with the people she loved most. "Detours are opportunities to experience new things."  What detours have you made in your life?