Treading water

Sometimes in life, while testing the waters, we fall victim to a rip current that pulls us away from the familiarity of shore. Maybe we got a bit too comfortable and let high tide wash in. Maybe we lost sight of the shore while daydreaming about what it would be like when we could traverse deeper waters. But no matter, we ended up a little further out than we were ready for.

Our first inclination is panic. We think that all is lost and if we don’t make it back to shore we will surely drown. So we paddle with all of our might, flailing arms and legs creating an explosion of flesh and sea water. When the chaos finally subsides and we look to the horizon, nothing has changed. We have exhausted ourselves and a harsh reality has taken hold; no amount of will or strength will guide us to shore.

So we start to give up. Yet, rather than sink to the depths of Oceana, we find that just minimal effort will keep us afloat. In fact, it’s not even that hard. We could probably do this for hours. So we have time to think. We remember that in order to get back to shore we will swim parallel to it, slowly inching our way back; instead of fighting nature we will join it.

Life is full of moments of struggle. We will have to fight hard just to survive in some moments. But many times we just need to take pause, to think, to strategize what’s next. Sometimes we just need to conserve our energy treading water. Because survival is first about just keeping your head above water.