two men walking

two weeks ago I had one walking son and one crawling son. Today I have two walking sons. In two weeks I'll have two walking sons and one sleeping and crying daughter.

I remember having a bunch of people in our living room cheering on Grif as he tried to roll over. It was like watching a game winning field goal. We're all on our feet...just jumping up and down yelling for him to tuck his knee under the other and flip over.

We've been cheering on Coop as he took his first two steps in a row....then 4...then 8....the new record is 24 steps in a row. He's pretty much just walking around now. He's just not as good as I am yet. (I'm really good) We're going to go through Griff learning to ride a bike, Cooper learning to talk, Griff learning to spell, the new baby sitting up....it just keeps going and going.

So what is there out there for me? Do I stop learning/growing?

At some point we all slow down...

I wonder how much of it is expectations?

There's very little expectancy for many people. They just kind of drift...and then wonder why life's so boring...why things aren't better. They rarely have a group of folks around them cheering them on as they attempt to try something new. Maybe that's part of it. I meet with a group of folks every couple of weeks - I meet with a group of guys once a week - I have a few friends that continue to press in on what's going on in my life...and it's still hard.

I'm still in that new to town phase. I have a few friends that I see once a month or so that challenge me toward bigger and better things. The two groups of people I meet with regularly I'm still getting to know. Things might never progress....but they seem to be. I think a part of this is just putting yourself out there. Part of it has to be risky. There has to be a risk of time, emotional energy, reputation, and the possibility of something better.

The bottom line is we all need a cheering section. We need people to kick us in the butt when we're being stupid....people who we'll listen to because we know that they love us and want what's best for us. We need encouragers. We need leaders. We need wisdom.

I want to press on...and it's hard enough on my own. I need the people in my life to keep me going.