Life is a series, a hallway, of doors. You will walk through your share, good and bad. Life’s doors will shut in your face; welcoming doors will open.
I have walked through my share of doors. Often, with the door slamming behind me and I feel myself in an empty dark place. When the less happy doors open for you, and you are shoved through them, remember you will be walking through a jollier door before you know it.
The doorways that lead to happiness can be harder to find, but that is true for a reason. If we constantly walked through doors painted in colors of joy, we wouldn’t appreciate them, would we?
If you are lucky and blessed, you will spend your days on the positive side of doors. But most of us must spend some time in the darker places, the ugly doors, to fully enjoy the brighter ones. Life is a hard one, as much of us know. I believe how you spend your dark days, as well as the time spent after the fact reflecting, has a lot to do with how many brighter days you enjoy.
The metaphor for a door is a heavy one. It carries a lot of weight, and sometimes that weight is on your shoulder.
“A very little key will open a very heavy door.” – Charles Dickens, Hunted Down
Dickens knew of these heavy doors.
Life is full of doors, opening and closing along the way.
This could not be truer. That door. It opens. It closes. And it always opens again. Be patient, and it will open. And when it does, skip right through it and enjoy life. Enjoy life, but realize how the not-so-happy times have a place, also. These times help us grow. They help us learn about ourselves. They help us better ourselves. It is never enjoyable to be going through a bad time, but when you come through it, through that door, you have changed. You need to embrace the change and learn from it. If you do learn–you will be stronger and better for it.
As a friend recently so poetically said, “You’re going to be happy,” said Life. “But first, I’m going to make you strong.”
Yes, life makes us strong. Life gives us weight to carry around, so we can be tough and open those doors. All those doors.
picture provided by Chris Wright of @missparfaite
Be curious, as well. When you get pushed through a few bad doors, you become weary of all doorways. Keep moving. Keep looking for new doors.
Walt Disney never let a door slam in his face. “We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new things, because we’re curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.”
When you are enjoying life, it is much easier to see the bright side to door-openings and door-closings. It is always easier on the other side. Looking back, you can learn from one bad door to the next. As well, as learn from the positive doors.
Elizabeth Taylor spoke of this. “I feel very adventurous. There are so many doors to be opened, and I’m not afraid to look behind them.”
Don’t be afraid of opening and closing doors. Don’t fear them. Learn from them.
“Be an opener of doors” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson
Be tall, be strong, and you will make it through that doorway when life pushes you through it. And be tall and strong again, when you flitter-flutter through the next door. Be an opener of doors, and embrace where they lead you.
I hope for you many happy doors, a few not-so-great doors, because we have to learn, and no scary, heavy doors. Life’s doors are full of lessons. Embrace them all.
love and blessings~dd
*I wrote this article, published in April, for Taylor Magazine. Read it here.
*Note: This email may contain affililate links, which means that if you make a purchase using these linkes, I may receive a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Yes to opening doors in life – embracing change and emerging stronger is such an important life lesson.
Yes, Suchi! It is important because we all go through times os bad doors! Thanks for reading!!
I want to “be an opener of doors!” Great article Dedra!
xo~D
YOU ALREADY ARE, D! YOU ALREADY ARE!!!
Such an amazing perspective, and I love the door imagery you paint through your words! And the door photos are awesome of course. But your words were so good. We’re standing facing a series of doors right now. The door behind us is closing, and we don’t yet know which is the right door. But the door will open and in the meantime we’re tryign to enjoy this transition!
Thank you so much. Appreciate that! I’m sorry for the doors you’re going through and I hope it’s a short “hallway” and you’re through a happier door!!