It Will Take Your Breath Away

I had gone from being ignorant of being ignorant to being aware of being aware.

          - Maya Angelou, I know Why the Caged Bird Sings, p. 271

Awareness is a glorious, breathtaking and threatening experience.

It's glorious because we are built for learning and discovery.

It's breathtaking because when you realize your own power, when you realize what you're capable of, when you recognize how much the world needs you, the real you, the you you already are, and the you you're capable of being, it will take your breath away.

And it's a threat. It may threaten the life you live now. It may threaten the comforts you enjoy. It may damage the illusion of safety you've established.  It may wreck the excuses you've created in order to keep living a life that is less than what you really want for you and those around you.  It certainly has for me.

The more we realize what's possible, the harder it is to turn back to a life of ignorance without an equal measure of loss. 

But for those who seek it, awareness is a well that will never run dry.