Imagine that you are in a hot air balloon that is tethered to the ground by ropes.  The ropes are weighted down to the ground by heavy bags of sand.  You have tried stoking the fire so that the balloon can take off, but as long as it remains tethered, it can’t go anywhere. Now imagine that some of those bags of sand are heavy memories from the past. Memories that keep you from moving forward. Experiences that ended in failure, pain, and loss.  Now take a pair of shiny scissors and cut those ropes loose.

You try again to stoke the fire, but still the balloon won’t rise.  You inspect the remaining ropes and realize that these bags of sand represent the toxic people in your life.  They keep you from being the person you want to be, so you cut these ropes too.

You try again to fan the fire, but you see that there are still a few ropes.  These are not so easy for you to cut, they are your responsibilities. They are people that you love, people that you care about, people that you are responsible for so you can’t just leave them behind.  Look around the basket that you are standing in.  Perhaps, if you can make enough room, you can take them with you?  You have over packed and there’s some old baggage you don’t need anymore.  Heave those burdens out of the basket and lighten the load.  Now pull up the remaining ropes and bring those whom you love safely into the basket with you.

Stoke that fire one more time until it’s roaring with power.  Feel your balloon lift into the air, carrying you and those you care for within it.  Fly higher.  Fly above the low lying clouds that hide the sun until you reach the clear blue open sky.

Feel the euphoria.

Feel yourself soar!

http://www.theresadodaro.com   Author of The Tin Box Trilogy