DON'T FORGET TO LOCK UP

Every time you say you can't do something, it's like saying, 'I can't leave the house because the door is locked.' What is your lock - fear, uncertainty, doubt? Just turn the handle and walk through the door. The whole world is waiting for you.

Life is a journey.

I was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY, with two younger brothers. To us, Brooklyn was the center of the universe. That was sort of instilled by our mom, who was born and raised in the same zip code and will probably die there too. 

As kids, we would go on short trips to our relative's house near Harrisburg, PA, or to the mountains for a summer vacation. I fondly remember that we would look out for license plates on the other traveler's cars to pass the time. Of course, we see lots of New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania plates. But every once in awhile, we see a foreign plate. One from Ohio or Indiana or South Dakota. The further away, the more exciting. In my mind, the longer the distance, the more points it was worth in our imaginary game. For my mom, those foreign states were fascinating.

My dad, always driving too fast in the left lane, would pass these slowpokes. He would always have an interesting comment about whatever State the license plate was registered to. As we would pass the car, my brothers and I would be plastered against the window like we were at the Bronx zoo. I would think to myself, who are these people? Where are they going? Why are they so far from home? I didn't know people actually lived in that State. What is their life like in Weskonsegnoshigan or wherever it was west of Pennsylvania? Boy, I couldn't wait to get a good look at the aliens. As we'd pass the car, my mom would say in her real Marisa Tomei in My Cousin Vinny accent, "Oh my gawd, they look just like us."

You are like a car on a highway. Have you ever drove on a long trip? A six- or eight-hour trip?

You drive through towns and cities but don't stop - you're on your way to somewhere.

Periodically, you need to stop for food or comfort break.

Have you ever pulled off the road, got out of the car, and met new people? Anytime I have done that, I have had a grand experience. It always seems that I was meant to meet these people.

Imagine stopping in various towns but not getting out of the car. You just look at people's faces as they go by. You feel like you want to say hi. You want to know where they are going. What's their story? Where did they come from? Did they have a good childhood? Do they have siblings? What's their favorite breakfast cereal?

But you don't get out of the car. At a subconscious level, you feel like 'have to get to my destination. I really don't have the time. They don't have the time. Why would they want to talk with a stranger? Anyway, the car door is locked. I can't get out and talk to folks. I'll keep moving on.

'The car door is locked.' What does that mean? If you stopped the vehicle, unbuckled your seatbelt, and pulled the door lever, the door would open. If it didn't, if there was an emergency, you'd go out through the window.

Life is the same way. We are driving to our imaginary destination but rarely stopping unless we need to or maybe if it's scheduled. But for many people, they go through life with the doors locked and windows up. They never smell the air or taste the local food or meet the great people who are exactly like them. We don't connect because the door is locked anyway. However, the door is locked from the inside. We have complete control. The lock is our own fears. But isn't it interesting that every time we've unlocked our car door, faced our fears, we had a great, beautiful experience?

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