How to Find Happiness A-Z: T

We've all played it, right?

You know that feeling of free fall, as your gut clenches, your insides quiver, and your nerves scream, "What are you doing, you idiot!?"

Trust.

Who would you trust to catch you? Your best friend? Your neighbor? A parent? A spouse?

These are the people in your inner circle. But would you trust a stranger to catch you?

Some of us have a relationship with deity. Some of us trust in a higher power, because as much as our friends, neighbors and even family love us, they are imperfect and will inevitably fail or be unable to catch us at some point. There's only one source of constancy, and true happiness comes knowing there's someone out there who loves and watches over us--someone who's ready to help--often even before we're humble enough to ask for it. I suppose the point is, in order to be rescued, we must have a relationship of trust with that source of power and love. We have to believe we will be caught, and accordingly, be willing to fall.

Picture courtesy of Ali

My husband and I have done some pretty crazy things in this life: parted ways for 2 years while madly in love (for a service mission), started a family young (yes, intentionally *gasp*), decided to home school (*pointing* I see those bobbing heads!), wrote a musical... But by far, the craziest thing we've ever done was move to New York City.

In part, it was because of the musical. In part, it was what we felt we needed to do. So, seven months pregnant with #3, we packed up a car and my hubby drove cross country while I searched online job listings. Insane? Yup.

After staying with his grandparents in New Jersey for two weeks (the exact amount of time allowed by their housing community), my husband miraculously found a job in NYC. It was in an industry he'd been inspired to study for the last 3 years, despite the unfavorable circumstances around his studies. Not only that, the expected job searching window was a minimum of 3 months in the city, and the number of openings for that specialty? They were very limited. --And really, after having lived there, I'm in awe at how the timetable played out. By all logic, it shouldn't have. He had only one day to go house searching before starting his new job, and again, a search that typically takes weeks, came together in a single day. His brother decided at the same time he was going to return to school at Columbia University, and we were suddenly able to share a moving truck. We ended up having the exact amount of money needed to move, while our funds should not have been sufficient.

Coincidence? Perhaps. But I've only told you half the story. There's no doubt in my mind a greater force was out there, paving our path and making the impossible possible. I trust that power, because of the experiences I've had, because it's the ultimate source of peace, because I'd be lost without it.

Who do you trust?