My good friend Ceri gave me a few writing assignments to add to my ever-growing list. I ended up choosing one of them for my next assignment, although it did end up being over two pages long, probably because I babbled on with some philosophical nonsense at the beginning. But hey, that's my prerogative as a writer!
Assignment #4: Write Two Pages about How The Choices You Have Made Changed The Path of Your Life.
Every time we make a choice, it changes the path of our lives. Some decisions are minor enough that it barely puts a curve in our life path. The path we choose and the path we could have chosen run side-by-side, occasionally crossing again at a time where another minor choice needs to be made. Again, the choice we make still keeps us heading in the same direction as the alternate path.
Then there are the choices that, when we make our decision the paths veer away from each other, going in vastly different directions, leading to a completely different life than the other path would have led to. Which path we follow depends on that critical moment, when you are standing there at the fork in the road looking at the decisions before you, and then choose the path that you hope is correct.
Some people only see one critical fork in the road on their life path, or they may never have those critical moments in life. They have nice smooth paths, never a curve or a rock to slow their journey.
The rocks are those things that happen that you can’t control, that happen without you choosing for it to happen. Some people trip on the rocks and fall and cannot seem to get themselves back up. Others come to the fork in the road and stand there, unable to choose a path out of fear that they will choose the wrong path.
I’ve tripped over several rocks on my life path. Many times I wanted to just sit there, nursing the hurts that the fall caused, not wanting to look past that rock to what was beyond. Somehow, I always got back up and moved forward. Sometimes I had a helping hand life me up, brush off the dirt, and face me forward again. Sometimes I struggled to my feet alone, not because no one was there, but because I had to do it alone to get past that rock.
I’ve had several critical forks in my life path so far, and I’m only 32. Decisions that have drastically changed what my life could have been, and some that were big changes but not quite as drastic of a change.
One of what I would consider to be a very critical fork in the road that I stood at for a few moments in time was at the age of 17, my senior year of high school. I had the chance to join the Military. I took the tests they wanted me to take and scored very high on them. Then the recruiter mentioned sending me into the Nuclear field of study. The thought of being around something that could potentially kill thousands of people from one little mistake, combined with the fact that I could hardly walk 10 steps without hurting myself, bumping into something or dropping something, made me turn away from that path to head down the one I hoped would be less dangerous.
Where would I be now, if I had chosen the other route, if I had joined the military? Would I still be a proud member, serving my country? Would I have gone to war several times already? Would I be back in
Would I have met my husband, the man that I plan to share the rest of my life with? He is former military, but from the Army branch whereas I was looking at the Navy. He might not have been on that other path. Or...we may still have met but under different circumstances.
You may never know what that other critical path would have led you to, even though you may sit and wonder about it, questioning yourself if you made the right decision. But once you turn away and head down another way, that alternate path is gone. You may have another opportunity someday to head in that direction again, but everything in-between cannot be changed, that option is gone. The path we choose is the path we must live by. You cannot go back and erase the steps you’ve already made to choose another path.
A more recent critical fork in my life path happened a little over a year ago. Through much careful consideration and discussions with my husband, I took the fork in the road that meant quitting my job and finishing my college degree.
Where as that path taken me so far? Well so far, I have graduated college with a bachelor’s in Management. I am still unemployed; our country is in a recession and
If I had stayed on the other path, continuing to work where I was? Well…who knows what would be going on now. That path is gone, in the past.
Time to keep looking forward. Time to see where this path leads me.
Shell
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