Stay

Yesterday was a good day. I awoke to crisp, dry Fall temperatures. It is my kind of weather. It makes me feel giddy and full of potential. It makes me want to cook hearty meals and open my windows. It makes me want to get out into the world and live life a little better than I previously had. It is change at the most basic level and it makes me want to change too.

While I was running in the cooler, dryer air yesterday, I got to thinking about how much I need change even when I don't know it. Or even when I think I don't want it. Then I realized maybe those are the times I need it most. And maybe the times I want to change--circumstances, myself, other people--are the times I need to sit still and ask myself some serious questions, starting with: What are you trying to run away from? Because that is often the case with me. And as I learned earlier this summer, those are often the times I need to sit still.  Those are usually the times Stay needs to be my mantra. Stay and push through the hard part. Stay and be quiet. Stay and listen. Stay and fight. Or stay and make peace.

I've realized that when I do decide to stay, so often change comes on the heels of the hard part. It is the affirmation after the acceptance of a call. It is the reward for obedience. So today, in the midst of the beautiful change in weather I will look for opportunities to stay. And I'll stay because I want to, not because I have to. I ask you, too, please stay with me.