Going Places and Moving Mountains

Today I asked my friends on Twitter and Facebook to name their favorite Dr. Seuss book. It was the good Doctor’s birthday, after all, and I feel like – at the very least - we owe the man a nod. I love his books and the reaction their mere mention elicits in people as they did today. (I suspect copious amounts of green eggs and ham were consumed today.) But one of Dr. Seuss’ books stands out for me:

“Oh, the Places You’ll Go!”

On March 2^nd of last year I asked my friends on Twitter to guess what my favorite Dr. Seuss book is. Most missed the mark. I’m not sure why, because in my view it’s quite obvious.

For one, it’s uplifting and empowering.

Congratulations!
Today is your day.
You're off to Great Places!
You're off and away!

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself 
any direction you choose.
You're on your own. And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy who'll decide where to go.

I’m ambitious. I work hard. The book speaks to that, so I thought it would be obvious it’s my favorite.

The book is also realistic, and this realism is emblematic of the last two years of my life:

I'm sorry to say so
but, sadly, it's true
that Bang-ups
and Hang-ups
can happen to you.

You can get all hung up
in a prickle-ly perch.
And your gang will fly on.
You'll be left in a Lurch.

You'll come down from the Lurch
with an unpleasant bump.
And the chances are, then,
that you'll be in a Slump.

And when you're in a Slump,
you're not in for much fun.
Un-slumping yourself
is not easily done.

Maybe it’s not easily done. But it’s done, against all odds and despite the loud howls of the Hakken-Kraks. And now, of course, when I step I do it:

“with care and great tact and remember that life’s a Great Balancing Act.”

Balance: Yes, that. I’m on my way to finding that. Not quite there… but who is?

But I’ll tell you this. More often than not these days, I feel this:

KID, YOU'LL MOVE MOUNTAINS!

The mountains I’m moving these days are very different from those I was focused on a few years ago. And while I’m still learning what it takes to move these new mountains ahead of me, with every day my confidence builds that I can do it. I will do it. For the kid. For me.

You're off the Great Places!
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting.
So...get on your way!

I’m on my way. And I’m smiling as I go.

Note: The excerpts above from ‘Oh, the Places You’ll Go!’ are the property of Dr. Seuss and Random House Children’s Books. If you don’t own the book, you really should buy it. It sits on my bedside table so the kid and I can read it as often as we’d like. And we do.