The Way Out
Now that the holidays are upon us (i.e., Off from Work) I decided to reorganize my place (i.e., Clean Up). I bought two dozen banker boxes, with the intention of moving everything into them. (They stack so nicely that I can understand why Bankers like them so much).
Everything was going along smoothly when I opened one of the old boxes. It stopped me in my tracks.
Among a lot of old, unnecessary papers was a To Do list. It really didn’t look any different from the others, but I knew right away how special this one was.
“All Credit Card Statements as of April 2018”
OK, seems innocent enough.
“Bank Statements… Car Appraisal…”
These were awfully big items to just be on one line.
“Sell Car at Carmax”
I realized what this was.
It wasn’t just a list of things to do. It was the way out of the lowest points in my life.
This was the Rebuild Plan.
This was written after the shock wore off… after the pain that comes after the numbness.
It was the turning point to a brighter day.
Now, when things go bad, my default response is to flee (i.e. Fight/Flight/Freeze). My childhood was filled with always having to run and hide, and that lingers into today.
However, the Adult Me knows to replace the meaning behind “Flight” … to change it from “flying away” to “flying towards.” Pick three options that are better than THIS (whatever the current “This” is).
Weight those options.
Then take action towards the best one.
It may or may not work out, but it’s something to look forward to. It’s something to hope for.
This “To Do” took $160,000 of credit card debt by the horns, and eliminated it within four years.
It took a lot of discernment, and determination, of drive, and a little bit of dreaming, to bring it into existence…
And me out of the ashes.
……………………………
If you’d like to relive the original moments as they unfolded, check out the GoFundMe updates here: https://gofund.me/f6cfc391