How easy it can be for us to forget we are all on different paths in life. We look at others, watching, waiting for them to fall so we have the chance to admire our own steady steps, or maybe we find ourselves wanting what others are handed along their journey. However, little do we realize watching others live their lives, walk their paths, it only allows us to stumble and lose sight of our own path. I remember in high school, when I would hit a rough patch and hang my head, my best friend's stepdad would give me a hug and tell me, "Keep your chin up, kid." I never gave this saying much thought until my junior year, when my best friend used is as the close to her stepdad's eulogy. Ever since then I tell myself every day, especially lately, "Keep your chin up, kid..." because you'll miss your whole life if you go through it with your head down, keep your eyes forward so that you don't lose sight of what waits for you up ahead.

But as I'm writing this, I can only think, what if I don't mind veering off the path every once in a while? After all, isn't that where all the fun comes from??

"We can never judge the lives of others, because each person
knows only their own pain and renunciation. It's one thing to feel that you are
on the right path, but it's another to think that yours is the only
path." Paulo Coelho

-LR