Lessons from Max #3 | IT'S ALL ADVENTURE

As soon as I saw you, I knew the adventure was about to happen.

- Winnie the Pooh

Max was always up for an adventure. And for my blonde-red buddy, just about anything fit the bill. A car ride was Disneyland - whether it led to a walk by the lake (one of our favorites), or a trip to Walmart (not). "Wanna go for a walk?" caused the skip-dance (See Lesson #1). Max discovered things - inanimate objects, other dogs, people, etc. - on every walk that I might have just breezed past. He investigated. He invested.

Max loved new places and old. Familiarity never dulled the adventure. He especially loved meeting people, even the few who weren't so excited about meeting him. (Some noticed his 100 pound frame before seeing the smile in his eyes.) He investigated. He invested. For Max it was all an adventure.

Fill your life with adventures, not things. 

Have stories to tell, not stuff to show. 

- Anonymous (one of my favorite authors)

It is easy to be ensnared by the mundane. Status quo is a padded bear-trap that causes no immediate pain, but hampers our mobility and ultimately drains vitality. Like the proverbial elephant cruelly conditioned by a leg chain to not venture out, we fail to realize what traps our spirit and kills our sense of wonder are chains of our own making (or at least our empowering). 

Sometimes adventure requires a flight or a boat - a trip to an exotic locale. More often the best adventures are embarked upon with a simple decision: A "hello" that leads into an engagement more easily avoided; a turn to the road less traveled. Adventures come in all shapes, sizes and flavors. Whatever form our adventures take, they share this in common: Adventure fills the soul. 

Ultimately, adventure is attitude. It is a glint in the eye, a fire in the heart. And the best news? An adventure attitude can be cultivated. This fire can be stoked. A first step creates desire for another. Each taste deepens the appetite. So step. Taste. Investigate. Invest. 

The road goes ever on and on, down from the door 

where it began. Now far ahead the road has gone, 

and I must follow, if I can.

- J.R.R. Tolkien

I will investigate. I will invest. After all... it's all adventure. Thanks for the lesson buddy. 

For now...

D