Fatherly Advice

So tonight as I was getting ready for bed I stumbled into my Dad's room and just casually started talking. Little did I know, this would be a pivotal conversation in my life and in our relationship. We don't usually have deep conversations, pondering life's challenges or my relationships---but tonight was different. I went to my Father seeking a rational, stable answer to something I've been struggling with all Summer: change. It isn't happening for me. Or so I thought. My Dad and I were talking all about how my anticipation for change has so far been unmet by the lazy days of Summer and how exhausted I was from the monotony of day to day life. Then he shot this at me as I was complaining about my unanswered expectations: "Things change. And sometimes they aren't what you expect. You make plans. They change too." And then I told him about how I didn't know what I wanted out of life at all. He answered, "So you're saying you don't know what you want out of life? You don't have to. Not now, anyways." ---That, right there helped in more ways than I'm sure my Dad had intended. I need to stop worrying about what MIGHT happen and start focusing on what IS happening. I need to remember that each day presents me with the opportunity to create change, or enjoy what I have. My Dad reminded me that although I don't exactly know where life might take me, I can count on my "North". When things go wrong, I can always head North...home. And even if they go perfectly right, I still don't know what tomorrow will bring. But I know that for today I just have to enjoy it. And allow myself to live. Not make plans. Not anticipate what I don't know. But just live in today.