Leap of Faith

I made a big decision yesterday.
And made it official today.

And?

Well, I keep flashing back to my summer spent at Redwood Christian Park (RCP) and one stunt on the ropes course. To my fellow RCPers, do you remember the "Leap of Faith?" I'm sure there was a tie in to trusting God, but let's face it- it was just fun! To this day I still don't know how we scurried up those wooden slats way up that redwood tree and stepped out on to that tiny platform and leaped with all our might to the trapeez bar hanging out in front.

Or you know, be terrified but hear the calls of encouragement from friends 40ft below while you cursed yourself for being the first volunteer. And when you finally picked the one voice you wanted to listen to your feet were suddenly lead and it was impossible to inch forward. Even when all the sweat from your palms should have helped? Okay, maybe it was never that bad but if you've ever jumped off a platform/high dive, out of a plane, or into a shark cage you know there's that pause. The moment when you feel your pulse in your toes. Your racing heart is the only thing you hear. Your stomach feels like a lead ball and a black hole at the same time. Now that I think about it, it's probably my survival instinct saying "Katie. This can go terribly wrong, terribly fast."

And it can.
And it may.
But there are still a few safety nets built into my decision...there always are.
I'm a control freak- remember? Not to mention I used to be a safety officer.

Now that I'm recalling all those summers post ropes course install, the little voice that narrates my flash backs is strongly suggesting that I never actually caught the bar...but it didn't matter. The rope securely attached to my harness was threaded through a simple system and safely on the ground I knew the ropes course folks would make sure I left the trees and eventually make it back to the ground.

My safety net? Well I sure hope I don't have to hit it because with this leap of faith I plan on catching that bar and hanging on for dear life. However, if something goes terribly wrong, I will let that net catch me and when I'm ready to give it another go, I do just that.

So...what's my leap of faith?

Long exhale....

Today I committed to leaving Naples at the end of my 3 year tour.

So what's next?
I have no idea. That's where the faith part comes in. I can't hold onto the tree and still expect to hang from that bar. One must go and I chose to let Naples go. Head out here and we can discuss all my reasons over a bottle of wine, but just trust me when I say this is the right decision...

For now?

• Butterflies are having a war in my tummy. I think the excitement butterflies are conquering the nervous ones that until today have had complete dominance.We'll see how I sleep tonight.
• I continue to search for jobs within the government. Anywhere and everywhere I can.
• I create my Italy Bucket List.
• Nico needs to get ready to travel.