The last time I went kayaking, I had a bit of trouble getting back on the dock. In my defense, I wasn’t using my own kayak, the dock was higher than the boat and it was awkward.  

The long and the short of it is that I didn’t make it onto the dock. I went in the river. 

This part of the river is filled with thick silt. Muck that I sunk into up to my thighs. This much muck makes it even harder to hoist oneself up onto the floating dock. 

Growing up around boats and water, it totally cracked me up that I fell in. I laughed hard. Not just little giggles but peels of laughter over being in the drink that was so muddy and murky. I found it hilarious. My kayaking companion didn’t see the humor in it – she was a bit horrified. Which only made me laugh harder. 

The mud was so thick that it was impossible for me to gain footing and traction. I had to reach into it and pull my sandals off – setting them on the dock one at a time. With that, I was practically covered in mud. 

Even as I was laughing through this incident, I was thinking about the ways life can surprise you.

You think you are close enough to the dock, have the agility to get out of your kayak, and can manage even if it happens without grace. The reality is sometimes we end up hip-deep in muck. Unexpected situations can leave us feeling emotionally, spiritually and physically sucked in. It can be hard to pull oneself out alone.

In that moment, I needed my horrified friend who helped drag me onto the dock. A neighbor’s garden hose helped me clean up enough to walk home. The laughter had subsided but for me, the moment remains. 

In life’s sudden, startling, difficult circumstances it is easy to think we have to muscle through alone. To start scrambling to figure our way out of a messy, muddy, perhaps smelly situation. And while there are things that we accomplish alone, we can also find resources to help ourselves. Finding our equilibrium after a tumble can be brought about by collaborating with a coach. 

A coach trained to offer support, encourage, ask questions that will stimulate the process, lift us up, and enable us to take the next right step is an invaluable investment. 

Going it alone can be daunting and time-consuming. Seeking assistance can be daunting too – because it means being vulnerable about where one is in the process. (It was vulnerable there in the river muck because there were invisible to me logs, cables I could feel anchoring the floating dock and more that I couldn’t identify. It was not a place I longed to linger). 

We need one another. Community, friends, family and for an extra boost, time spent with a life coach. Getting extra support and encouragement by working with a life transition coach may provide you with the energy and support you need to move from muck into wholehearted living.

 A lending hand in the form of a coach can be just the thing to get you out of the muck and onto the dock. 

If you find yourself coaching curious, reach out and schedule a free discovery session with me. We can explore where you are, where you’d like to be and how we might collaborate to move you through that process. If we determine that we aren’t the right fit for one another, I can assist you in finding a coach who is. 

Laughter is a good resource too. If you can find humor, even in challenging situations, you discover that it gives you the opportunity to catch your breath, ground yourself inside your body and connect to the full tool kit of resources you carry within yourself.