Doors, Windows & Opportunities
There’s a few sayings out there about doors and windows and opportunities “oh my”(…sorry maybe that’s lions and tigers and bears?). Anyways, however deep and insightful the quotes may be, one thing is for sure - they are much easier spouted out than they are to put into action.
They say when opportunity knocks…open the door! In essence, this means saying “yes”. Being open to trying new things and not letting fear hold you back from what could be a wonderful new beginning for you. It can be scary to open the door and see what’s behind it (even when it’s something we’ve been hoping for). If we were being really honest, our fear of the unknown is probably even bigger than our fear of spiders! So while it might be hard to answer those knocks, it would serve us well to open the door and see what’s waiting for us. You may embrace the change and opportunity and fling the door open wide when you hear the knock. Or you may be the cautious type and just barely crack it so that you can peek out. If you choose the later, remember that you might not be able to see everything that’s waiting behind the door, it may be only the very tip of the iceberg that’s visible at first, so don’t dismiss it before having a proper poke around!
When one door closes another door opens. This one encourages us to look around for new opportunities when it feels like one has slipped out of our finger tips. Sometimes you have to venture down the hall a little ways to see where they heck this “other” door that was supposed to open is hiding. Though it may feel like you’re out of options, with time (and persistent wandering), it will be there, patiently waiting for you to discover it. When we claim not to see it, the wise ones say to look for a window - something you can squeak through to get on the other side of wherever you are now. Window, door, or a crack in the ceiling, It doesn’t really matter how you get out and move on from what seems like an opportunity lost, just as long as you do!
But what about those times when we find ourselves knocking, but it seems like it’s opportunity that isn’t answering us? Sometimes we get tunnel vision and we stand at a door knocking and knocking until our knuckles are bleeding and bruised - to no avail. Eventually we probably move on to beating our head against the door, but that too is futile. It’s these times when we need to take a step back and look around at the big picture. It doesn’t mean that we want to open that door any less - which is the tricky part. But when you find yourself stuck trying the same thing over and over (all the while expecting different results of course), see if you can take a step back and survey your surroundings. Maybe there’s a reason unknown to you right now that that door is closed. Trying to get someone to change or do something they just aren’t willing to do is no way to spend your energy. Just like trying to fit a square peg into a round hole is also not a good use of our time and effort. Keep the end goal in sight, but try not to get caught up in the details of how it needs to look to get there and which exact door you think needs to open.
I was out for a walk one day and happened upon this “door” near the lake - seen in the picture above. I couldn’t help but think this was the perfect visual for all of the times in our lives when we stand at one door knocking, being unable to see that everything…and I mean everything else around that door is completely open. When it seems like opportunity isn’t answering, step back and see if it’s actually you who is the one not willing to see the answer is somewhere else - you never know there may be wiiiidee open spaces for you to access the same dream you’ve always had, you might just need to open a different door.