Life's a Dance

You know, things don't always go as planned.

One can't possibly plan ahead for everything in life and expect it to go that way.

I'm learning to be okay with that.

        Sometimes, I just get into this mindset where I think, "okay, I've thought out every possible way this could go, I've planned for everything that could possibly happen, there is no POSSIBLE WAY this could not go how I have planned it out." ..... and I am almost immediately proven wrong. Well, not always. In fact, I'm usually pretty good at planning. This is probably one of the reasons it shakes me up so much when something goes other than I had planned it. 

       Why am I blogging about this? I just tried answering a boy who asked me to the dance in a creative way. Emphasis on TRIED. To make a long story short, I'll skip to the climax of him walking in on me still setting it up. Not cool. It worked out, it just didn't run as smooth as I had hoped it would. There were many complications which just continued to increasingly frustrate me over and over again. I'm still frustrated about it to this moment. 

        But, I'm learning to be okay with it. 

There's a song I really like that refers to life as being a dance. 

This is my favorite part of it:

"The longer I live, the more I believe
You do have to give if you want to receive.
There's a time to listen, a time to talk,
And you might have to crawl even after you walk.
I've had sure things blow up in my face.
Seen the long-shot win the race.
Been knocked down by the slamming door.
Picked myself up and came back for more.

Life's a dance you learn as you go,
Sometimes you lead, and sometimes you follow.
Don't worry about what you don't know,
Life's a dance you learn as you go."

I really love this song. It sends a message I'd like to follow. 

I am going to try to be less frustrated with failed plans.

Life is a dance I'm learning as I go.

And there's nothing wrong with that.

I Can Easily Wreck

"I watched them tearing a building down,

A gang of men in a busy town.

With a ho-heave-ho and lusty yell,

They swung a beam and a sidewall fell.

I asked the foreman, “Are these men skilled,

As the men you’d hire if you had to build?”

He gave me a laugh and said, “No indeed!

Just common labor is all I need.

I can easily wreck in a day or two

What builders have taken a year to do.”

And I tho’t to myself as I went my way,

Which of these two roles have I tried to play?

Am I a builder who works with care,

Measuring life by the rule and square?

Am I shaping my deeds by a well-made plan,

Patiently doing the best I can?

Or am I a wrecker who walks the town,

Content with the labor of tearing down?"

Are you a builder, or a wrecker? 

"I can easily wreck in a day or two what builders have taken a year to do." 

How powerful a statement. 

              At times, we don't really think about what we are doing or saying, or about the impact we have. We assume that one word here, and one word there, can't really be such a terrible thing. Do not think you are this powerless. Never underestimate the power of a kind word. Or your ability to destroy thousands of them with one unkind word. Turn from harmful words, to helpful words. Do all you can to be the best you can for others. "Men are that they might have joy." Who are you to take that away from someone? Who are they to take it away from you? Think about the times when you needed help, and how much one kind thought could lift you up. Think about those who need your help the most. Yes, it can be tiring to constantly build someone up who has a hard time accepting your encouragement, it can be hard to build anyone up. But you may not know how much it means to them, until you stop. Be a builder, who can, brick by brick, help someone reach their full potential. 

Wouldn't you want someone to do it for you?