I am standing on the edge of a cliff looking out into the unknown. All that I have worked for lies in this one step, the metaphorical leap. But it’s midnight darkness. The tiny sliver of a moon sheds barely enough light to cast a fuzzy outline on the tops of what lies below, allowing hints of where this leap may lead. The reality relies on imagination, and mine has always been overactive, conjuring up the worst-case, the monsters, and the horrors that go beyond where any leap will lead.
I inch closer to the edge, feeling the ground with my feet until I am right up against the void, teetering between what is and what could be. I take a deep breath, and as I do, I hear footsteps approaching—a runner on the path I have trod to get to this spot. But running at midnight?
Somehow, the individual spots me in the darkness and stops, stepping off the path to walk up behind me. It is Adventure—I would know her anywhere. Her hair is tousled from her late-night jog, and her face is flushed. She leans in. “You should jump!” she states boldly.
Despite the steep climb up the mountain, her breathing is normal, almost relaxed. She is grinning widely, as Adventure always does. There is nothing taunting in her tone. She is simply giving advice. Urging adventure. I smile and nod. “Not quite ready,” I tell her. “It’s dark and I can’t see what’s down there.
“Oh…,” she tilts her head knowingly as she nods slightly. “You are definitely ready.” I’m not going to confront her. She knows me better than most. She has observed me since I was a child. “You already know what’s out there. And you’ve prepared for nearly every scenario you’ll encounter. Just do it.”
I look out into the void where I can hear the faint rumble of a tiny train slipping like a string of beads along thread-like wires. So. Far. Down. “But what about the things I haven’t prepared for?” I ask. And down the path, I see someone with a headlamp coming toward us, a flashlight in each hand and a glow-stick around her neck. Doubt.
Adventure turns and takes off at a sprint in Doubt’s direction. “Not NOW!!” she yells as she runs. “We got her this far, now we need to let her go. She’s ready!”
Doubt stops dead in her tracks. She looks tired, weighed down by the heaviness of the world. She looks in my direction, her headlamp briefly blinding. She looks at Adventure, and she sighs deeply, turning back down the path. She steps into the woods and crouches behind a bush where she can watch from a safe distance. “I’ll be right here if you need me!” she calls out to me, her energy sounding a bit like that of Eeyore.
And just like that, Adventure is right by my side again, and I have a momentary fear she might push me. But she doesn’t. She sidles up next to me until her shoulder is against mine. “You should go,” she whispers urgently. “Before the others come up the hill to stop you.”
I know she’s right. That whole crowd of nay-sayers, negativity, and self-defeat are always waiting in the wings to barge onto my stage, throw up roadblocks, and stall my progress. I came up here to get away from them, and I am beyond relieved that Adventure was the one to find me first. Otherwise, I’d be halfway home by now, back to my friends, Safety and Status Quo. Adventure is right. I’ve played out so many scenarios of how this will go. I have bolted my safety net in place, just in case. And I have my entire network available if I should need them.
It’s now or never.
I close my eyes, take a deep breath, and I leap out into the unknown. At first, I tumble, but then something magical happens. I am lifted on a sudden whoosh of air that nearly takes my breath, and I start to soar. Behind me, I can hear Adventure clapping and whooping wildly, cheering the choice I’ve made.
Positively Un-broken 