Even as you hear the words, living wild, you may think this is not for me. I live an everyday life. I have a full-time job, children, responsibility. Perhaps you even think to yourself, ‘I don’t want to live wild’.
But you do. We were made to live full, expansive and growing lives. But we become tamed. Like a frog in a kettle, we become so accustomed to the heat until we stop living with purpose and future in mind.
John Mayer sings a song about ‘staying inside the lines’. And as I sing this song, I remind myself that the voices giving this advice, are most often not ‘others’. They are the voices in my own head. The voices from history, mistakes made, family of origin, fear of failure, risk of reputation…and too often they tame us until time is over.
Many years ago, I heard a sociologist reporting survey results from seniors in a nursing home. In response to the question, “What is your greatest regret?”, the overwhelming answer was not taking enough chances. Not trying things that resonated in heart and soul.
Living wild is not about overriding your values and priorities. It is about living them out – forever – with passion and conviction.