One Foot in Front of the Other

This is just a quick note to let you know that I never want you to give up.  No matter what.  Just put one foot in front of the other.  Just do something each day.  When you’re tired or discouraged or when you wonder why it’s taking so long to get there, don’t worry about.  Just put one foot in front of the other.  Eventually you will arrive.  There is no way you can’t.  Hold on to your goal.  You will get there.  If nothing else, the laws of physics, of forward motion, will get you there.

Once I worked with a man, Al (not his real name) who was trying to get a job.  Al had a good heart, but he was a mess.  He was unkempt, overweight, and was dealing with a lot of personal difficulties.  I gave him all the help I could, but he had a lot to overcome. One day he was in despair and began crying.  He felt hopeless.  He felt that he was never going to get a job.  All he could see were his limitations.  All he could feel was his defeats and his frustration at how long things were taking.  He got through the day and shortly after that he was gone.  I didn’t know what had happened to him.

A few months later I was having my own difficulties.  Like my unemployed friend, I too was struggling with sadness, frustration, and hopelessness.  Certain parts of my life also seemed hopeless and seemed to be taking much longer to resolve than I’d hoped.  I decided to go for a walk.  I was lost in sadness and despair, not really paying attention to where I was or where I was going.  Suddenly an airport shuttle bus pulled up to the curb where I was walking. I was so lost in thought I almost didn’t see it.  The bus stopped, the engine shut down, and out of the bus stepped Al…as the driver!

He had gotten a job…as a shuttle bus driver.

I was so happy to see Al working that my despair had been forgotten.  Al had a job!  And it was a good job!  I was so happy for him.

Al did what all of us need to do.  He put one foot in front of the other.  Even when had hit bottom (which some of us need to do sometimes).  Perhaps hitting bottom was something that needed to happen, at least for Al.  Perhaps for many of us.  I don’t know.  What I do know is that we have to keep putting one foot in front of the other.  It’s that easy and it’s that hard.  One foot in front of the other to Get Started and to Keep Going.