Comfortable or Life Changing? (Part 2)-February 15, 2010

It’s difficult enough to walk down a new, unknown path in our lives when it means that we must let loose of a comfortable situation, but sometimes we are motivated to walk down paths that will likely change the entire course of our lives and everything that we know and hold dear, paths that although they seem nonsensical to follow, we still feel overwhelmingly compelled to do so.

Over the centuries, millions of immigrants have chosen such terrifying, all-encompassing paths when they made the decision to come to the United States. Many risked everything and left everything behind in hopes of a better life.

I love to travel overseas, but I’m always aware that I will soon return to my familiar way of life. I can’t imagine the courage it would take to board a ship, knowing that I might never return to my homeland, my family, my friends, my culture, my identity.

One of the privileges of teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) is that I get to work with students and families who have emigrated to the United States. It’s a real joy to see people who often arrive with little or nothing overcoming adversity and becoming successful in their newly, adopted country.

Recently, I came across the story of a woman named Julie Pearce who felt the call to walk down such an all-encompassing, potentially life-altering path. Until last month, Julie worked as a television anchor and reporter in Minnesota.

Nightly, she reported the events unfolding in Haiti from the earthquake that killed more than 200,000 people. Julie, who is also a registered nurse, decided she could no longer just report on what was happening. She decided she needed to use her nursing skills to directly help those who were suffering. So, Julie quit her job and bought a one-way ticket to Haiti, where she’s currently volunteering at a hospital in Port-au-Prince. You can follow Julie’s journey on her blog.

I’ve never met Julie, but I admire her willingness to take such a leap of faith. Will it forever change the course of her life? That remains to be seen, but her actions certainly serve as an example to those of us who might be considering a radical change in our own lives. It can be done. The universe can be trusted. Your Higher Power can be trusted.

As author Patrick Overton so eloquently put it, "When you have come to the edge of all light that you know and are about to drop off into the darkness of the unknown, faith is knowing one of two things will happen: There will be something solid to stand on or you will be taught to fly."