On the Edge: Taking Risks to Understand

Were you one of those kids where you would take risks... jumping in the swimming pool when your parents weren't around to catch you... wandering out of the protective confines of your front yard to explore your neighborhood... always being on the edge of the newest discovery?

Life provides many opportunities:  opportunities to take risks and opportunities to remain where we feel comfortable.  How would you describe risk-takers? Comfort-seekers?  Do you gravitate towards one extreme or the other?  Or, as in many aspects of our lives, does it depend on the situation?

On the Edge:
do you notice when I take the risk of opening up?

When I was in middle school, my family went to the Grand Canyon.  My parents counted on my older brother and me to help watch our four younger siblings.  At one of the observation areas, my youngest brother was using the cyclone fencing to help balance as he was walking along. What none of us noticed was the hole under the fencing.  My brother tripped and started sliding under the fence.  I grabbed his hand and shouted for my parents' help.

This incident replays itself in various contexts:

• Am I aware of dangerous situations?
• When do I wait until I am sure-footed in a new surrounding?
• Do I seek assistance when I miss the holes in my understanding and fall down?

I was old enough to realize my brother could have died if he slid under the fence and into the Grand Canyon, but through noticing and my parents' assistance, my brother is alive!

On the Edge:
when and how do we test our courage?

I find that as I practice the dialogue skills and attempt to understand another person, there are times when I must:

• Be cautious when selecting words or forming questions in order to respectfully honor the other person's experience.
• Take risks when sharing vulnerabilities, failures, and lessons learned.
• Seek assistance when the footing becomes unstable.

On the Edge:
when are we filled with inspiration and awe?

Realizing that we are on the edge of a Creation that is continually being created,  allows us to stand in awe and be inspired by Stories Unfolding.  Sometimes taking a risk is a matter of:

• Listening... when we want to shut down.
• Accepting... when we want to reject.
• Staying in Relationship... when we desire only our way.

As with the Grand Canyon, there is a mighty force working within each one of us, eroding the strata that have formed over the years:  misunderstandings, caution, pain and rejection.  Are we willing to allow this force to wash away missteps that cause us to stumble out of meaningful relationships?  It may be time to risk being on the edge: opening up to the courage of being inspired by the depths of another person.

May this week allow time to stand in awe at the beauty before us: the people who are risking to listen and understand.  And, may we be inspired by those who seek comfort in being our Better Self.

Larry Gardepie

Dialogue San Diego Consulting

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