My teddy bear...and my comfort zone

He was an old Smokey the Bear.
He was worn out from all the hugs and the stories.
He was missing his button eyes.
He was missing his park ranger hat.
He was missing his belt and badge.
He was missing fur from all the tugging in the night for safety with a sucked thumb.
And he was loved.
And he SURE didn't look like this one after years of protecting me during the night...

I look back on the days when a strong sense of support came from a blanket, a teddy bear, a binky pacifier and began too think...growing into adulthood, sometimes it can be a scary turn of events. That sense of security the items of our childhood provided is gone, packed away in a dresser drawer.

Sometimes you are thrown into adulthood and you don't have a choice but to grow up and grow up quick.

That was how I felt in regards to my parent's divorce.
Like everything was ripped out from underneath me and I was forced to navigate through all of that and figure out the next steps. Some I did on my own and found a sense of independence I had never experienced before. Some of it, I reached out to for help on...whether it was my mom or my close circle of friends...of which I will be eternally grateful for.

It isn't necessarily a yearning to go back to carrying a blanket.
That is just plain crazy for a adult to admit that info...ha ha ha ha ha ha

But perhaps attempting to find that sense of security is what I am really attempting to imply here?
It is finding that support system that you can rely on. Willing to listen and provide valuable feedback...trustworthy, confidence builders and that you are able to provide that in return.
Finding and growing into your own skin and then paying it forward. That is the important part...PAYING IT FORWARD.

But what happens when you get TOO comfortable? Too set in your ways?? Justin always says that I am unwilling to try new things...especially different food. And that is TRUE!!! The older I have gotten, the more comfortable I have become in regards to life. Settled. Stationary. Sedentary. Stagnant. He pushes me and forces me to try new things. Sometimes I do. Sometimes I don't. And it is okay.

And I just need those gentle, sometimes forceful, reminders to get out of that comfort zone.  Life is meant to be lived fully, and deeply, and as invested as we possibly can be. I posted this reminder on my classroom projector not only for me, but as an example to my kiddos. Sometimes the insecurity life provides serves as a shake-up that showcases that it is time for some life learning.

Consider yourself shook.