Take it.

I mowed my dead lawn today. That pretty much says it all. I mean, what’s the point? Ever have one of those kinds of days? (Weeks?)

So instead, I decided to take a walk.

Take a walk. Three simple words connected to an action that can make such a difference. What I’m realizing though is this: the most important word in that sentence isn’t walk.

Take it.

Take time. Take it in. Take five. It takes some getting used to but nevertheless, take it, whatever it is. I’m not talking about a walk. The noun doesn’t matter. Take the time. Sure, sometimes the time has to be scheduled based on all those responsibilities we adults have. Spontaneity is certainly a luxury for many people. But when you can, take it anyway.

And I don’t mean escape either. I’ve learned that escape is easy and it only gets me so far, sometimes never really much farther than when I started. I remember once watching some reality show when a man said something like this: “I want to live life instead of just watching it on TV.” And then I swear he turned to look directly at me. People escape life in a variety of ways, many of which are unhealthy. Life can make for heavy shoulders and our duties and troubles can be so tiring, even overwhelming at times. Waving a white flag and retreating is understandably tempting. But “taking” life means actually living it. Isn’t that a gift? An opportunity? A kick in the donkey? 

As we all know and we are told time and time again until we finally, finally hear it: "you only live once." It's a very honest cliche but for me, this saying speaks the truth more fully: "You only live once so do everything twice." I say three times! Twenty if it's really fun. Take it. Before it gets too late.