As a young girl, I loved walking along country roads. Often I would discover these paths that led down through muddy, murky ditches, up over hills, through dark, shadowy wooded areas or along sand dunes lined with marram grasses leading to the beach. The paths always called my name. A sense of adventure is what I had. I was intrigued by everything new and different. I felt I would not be satisfied unless I knew what was on the other side. Often I would run to the top of a hill just to have a look and see ~ amazed by the world beyond.

I was curious as to who made these paths. Was it a local traveler taking a short cut into the ditch and through the fields? Was it a deer, some cattle, perhaps a horseback rider, or perhaps it was a wild animal like a wolf or a fox? Maybe it was a hunter. Every possible thought stirred my youthful imagination as I explored these alluring paths wondering all the while if I should travel on someone else’s path.

As I matured, other paths called my name: the path to enlightenment and education, the path to a career, the path to marriage, homemaking, family and motherhood. And, like the young girl who could not be satisfied unless she explored each and every one, I did the same thing in adulthood challenging myself to full discovery.

Eventually I learned that we, as women, don’t have to have it all. We don’t have to travel on someone else’s path to find complete satisfaction or to have full discovery. I learned it is ok not to know what is on the other side and to contain our sense of wonder. I learned that every path was not meant for us to explore and discover; that some paths are not within God’s plan and purpose for our lives; that some paths can lead us into difficult circumstances, heartache and failure. The paths that are meant for us to travel are filled with God’s amazing love, mercy, grace, joy, wonder and guidance.

“How can a young person stay on the path of purity? By living according to your word”
Psalm 119:9 NIV.