A Leap of Faith

     About four years ago my grandfather Renstrom passed away. About four years ago I lost one of my most trusted advisors, confidants, examples and friends. About four years ago I gained one of the most powerful guardian angels anyone has ever had. Even though my grandpa is gone I know that he is always with me in one way or another. Literally not a day goes by that I don't think about him at least once and it is in those moments that I know he is with me, even if it is just for a tiny bit, just for the length of that thought or memory.

     What does this have to do with a "leap of faith"? Well this time of year, I tend to think a lot about faith. I was raised in an extremely religious household but it wasn't extreme in the way that it was oppressive or suffocating. It was and is a place where I was taught to allow my religion to be a part of me, and to love the Lord. It is because of this enviroment that the sting of the death of my grandpa was a little less harsh, because I knew that there was more than just this world and I knew for sure that my grandpa would never completely abandon us, he would make sure that there would be some way he could touch our lives.

     Faith. Without it the world would be full of sadness and crippling despair. Whether it be a faith in God or some other spiritual belief almost everyone has some kind of faith. I do not even want to contemplate where I would be today without my faith. It has brought me through some of the lowest lows of my life. But faith isn't just a belief in God or a spiritual belief. To me faith seems to be a paradigm to view the world through. People exercise faith everyday whether they know it or not. I'm not saying that the world's churches and mosques and synogogues etc are filled to the brim everyday with people, I'm saying that people are exercising faith everyday by trusting that the sun will rise each morning or that Starbucks will deliver their order to their stated preference. Faith is so much more than just a spiritual belief.

     I stumbled across a quote today that for one reason or another had a profound effect on me.
        Wisdom is knowing when a relationship has run its course. Not everything lasts - letting go is a
            leap of faith.
      As I look at who I was when my grandfather passed and who I am today I know that this quote is profoundly true. Letting go is a complete leap of faith. It requires the strength to step forward into the darkness of an unknown future. Lately I have been clinging to things from my past, and relationships from my past. I have never thought of my holding on to them being a sign of weakness or a lack of courage but it is. We hold on to things from our past because we are afraid to let go and move forward into something that is unfamiliar to us. Well here I am letting go. Taking a deep breath and stepping into my future; knowing all the while that I will have a guardian angel with me at my side.