Chances are if you’re reading this, you probably know me somehow… so you likely know a portion of my story. Some will have more details of my life than others, depending on the amount of time we’ve know each other and the setting. Since 2020 the mantra “Straight forward and through” imprinted itself on my heart, planted a strength in my soul, and left an impact on the way I live. Thus, the title of not just today’s blog, but the entire site’s name.

Allow me take you through a small glimpse of my journey.

In 2020, I walked through the most difficult season of life I’d ever experienced. Due to a variety of circumstances and reasons too deep to get into in this entry, I separated from my husband of 20 years. Those stories will likely come, as they provided me (and still do) hundreds of life lessons. But in that season, I encountered a beautiful new group of friends. We called ourselves the Circle of Hope. We were 5 ladies holding each other up in encouragement, prayer, laughter, many tears, deep scars, secrets, pain and the strength to keep going forward. Three were recovering alcoholics, one was a recovering drug addict, and I was a person caught in the ugliness of codependency, which led down ugly roads with deep wounds. Yet we became a circle of hope because we spurred one another towards becoming the best versions of ourselves.

As we walked that road together to each begin our journey towards healing and growth, mind you, it was also the time of Covid. However, we all wanted to find a way to connect. One fall afternoon, one gal gathered up donuts, another coffees, and we parked our cars and ended up sitting distances apart at picnic tables, yet happily face to face. In this time of conversation over coffee, the leader of the pack (*L) told us a story I will attempt to recap here, though I will not give it justice.

*L shared about an older mentor in her life named Freddie who radiated positivity and passion. Freddie recounted a story to *L about her own life when *L was walking a difficult road. You see, Freddie is from Europe and was a Jew in the times of World War II. Her village was peaceful… until it was not. When it came under attack, her father told her to flee the home and run through the forest until she got to the other side, where she would be safe. He had to stay to help others get away. Afraid and semi-alone, she began on her way. She didn’t know where she was going or who would be there, but her father told her to go straight forward and through. Just keep going. Don’t turn back, don’t look around, just go straight forward and through. She repeated this to herself as she ran… straight forward and through… straight forward and through. Miraculously, Freddie made it to the other side. Sadly, her father did not. What makes this even more incredible is that she was blind.

Freddie had every reason to give up. She could not see. She was alone. All the odds lined up against her. However, her faith helped her to push through. As did the support of someone encouraging her to just go straight forward and through.

We all need a person in our lives who helps us to remember to go straight forward and through. The challenges are hard. The hurt can be all encompassing at times. Change is scary. Facing the odds creates doubts. It is easy to give up and to give in to the comfortable, even if the comfortable means miserable. Back in 2020, when I was surrounded by the unknown in the separation of my marriage finding the courage to make changes in my life when it would have been easy to stay in the unhappy comfortable, the Circle of Hope came around me and provided that voice to stay “Just keep going… straight forward and through.” They didn’t tell me what to do or how to do it, they just walked with me and supported me.

Thus, the phrase has become a part of my life. I can’t tell Freddie’s story the way my friend *L does, but the impact of its meaning still inspires me. When times get hard, it does not mean we don’t pause and never look back or reflect on what we have learned, but we do have to keep going. Sometimes we must push through the pain and the uncertainties and embrace what is so uncomfortable in order to get to the other side. Sometimes, like Freddie, we cannot see where we are going, we just know we have to keep going straight forward and through.

Every season looks different for each of us. I am in a season of growth and embracing the uncomfortable. I am learning about myself through these chosen changes and stepping into a stronger version of me. Wherever you are on your journey today, I encourage you to keep going straight forward and through. There is always opportunity and growth and beauty on the other side, but sometimes walking through the forest blind is part of the requirement to get there.