If You Knock and It Doesn't Open, It's Not Your Door

"If you knock and it doesn't open, it's not your door."

This is one of my favorite quotes, and advice I often give to others when life doesn't go quite the way they expected. 

I stumbled upon this quote a few years ago. I had applied for a new job and was really excited about it. I felt like I was qualified, the interview had gone well, and I was fairly confident that I would be getting an offer. My life would be taking a new direction. Then I got the rejection email, telling me that they had chosen someone else. And I was stunned and disappointed.

That very same day, this quote showed up in my Facebook feed on a friend's timeline.

A few weeks after that, a different opportunity opened up that led me to where I am today. 

I knocked and the door didn't open. Because it wasn't my door.

This past week, the universe has been sending me signs again. And they've been signs related to doors. 

The bifold doors in my pantry came off their tracks - first the right one, then the left one. I battled with them for days and was frustrated and annoyed. Mostly because I knew my cat would get into the pantry and eat all of the food in there. I had nowhere else to put all of it to keep it away from her. 

I finally broke down and asked for help. When the doors got fixed, it was amazing how happy that simple thing made me.  

My garage door stopped working suddenly one night. It wouldn't close unless I held down the button inside the garage. I couldn't use either of my openers or the keypad on the outside of the garage to close it. In order to leave to go to work, I had to pull my car out of the garage, go back around to the front door, into the garage to close it and then back through the front door and out to my car again. 

I finally broke down and asked for help. Jacob went down to the garage and immediately saw that there was a bike tire blocking the sensor. Simple...yet somehow so difficult for me to see.  

In contrast to those figurative doors that didn't open when I have knocked over the years, these were literal doors that wouldn't close. I needed those doors to close to protect things in my life (the food from my cat and strange people from my home).  To keep them closed, I needed to humble myself and ask for help.  

And I think back to this past Halloween and Trick or Treating in our neighborhood. Countless doors opened when the kids knocked on them, giving treats and smiles and laughter at their costumes. 

And then there were doors with no lights on, telling the kids to stay away, we're not home, no candy here for you.

These were signs that knocking on doors can lead to fun and sweet things. And signs that some doors you just have to know to stay away from.

We encounter many doors in life. Doors of all shapes and sizes, both literal and figurative, each representing different opportunities. Some are meant for us to walk through and some are meant to stay closed.

Every door we knock on, whether it opens or not, teaches us something. This even goes for doors that open but then won't properly close.  

Many people dwell on the negative when life doesn't hand them the opportunities they think they want. They often spend so much time feeling bad about the door that didn't open that they miss the door right in front of them that is just waiting for them to knock on it.  

Knock as many times as you need to, but if that door doesn't open, trust that it wasn't your door. 

Then pause to look around you. Breathe in, breathe out, and believe that this is exactly what was supposed to happen at this moment in your life. 

Keep your mind and your eyes open for your door. It may be hidden from view but it will show itself at just the right time. 

And when it does, be prepared to knock.