The Merry Go Round

One day a naïve and curious woman decided to go for a walk down a 57 year old pathway; to her surprise it led to a magnificently built carousel otherwise known as a “merry go round.”  Without giving it much thought she knew she had to ride it.  She hopped upon the grandest of painted horses like a horseback rider jumping upon the back of a stallion.  Oh how it brought to mind remembrances of her childhood, from the joyfully played organ music to the intricate details in design.  It was grand!  It was the ride made of every childhood fantasy and for a grown woman it brought her back to the days of full crisp starched cotton dresses, white anklet socks and shiny black Mary Jane style shoes.

Over and over the song played.  She didn’t know how long she had ridden it.  She just knew it brought tremendous joy in a way she hadn’t experienced before.  She rode different horses upon the ride; even rode the buggy. She had thought the carousel only had one rider – herself; but she was wrong.  The sound of another woman’s laughter caught her off guard.  She looked over the neck of the current horse she was riding to hear where the laughter had come from.  Across the other side of the Merry Go Round was another woman enjoying the ride.  This woman was huge and robust and almost manly in appearance.  It was hard to believe that the pole of the horse could carry her weight up and down with the sound of the music.

“How long have you been on this ride?” She yelled over the music to the other woman.

“37 years!” The other woman hollered back equally surprised to see another woman on the ride. “What are you doing on this ride?  I thought I was the only one all these years.  Why haven't I seen you until now?”

Round and round the ride went.  When she went up the other woman went down; the organ music continuously repeated the same song.  The discovery of another rider made her perception of the ride change because she had become possessive of the carousel.  While the other woman continued to gleefully ride the merry go round, she decided she’d been on it long enough and wanted it to stop.

“What has made you stay on for so long?”  She yelled out to the woman still riding.

“Weeeeeeee!!!" The woman gleefully proclaimed as she bounced up and down. "This carousel has been mine since I discovered it as a teen.” I know every movement of it, every verse of the song, every stroke of paint upon every horse and buggy.  As I am familiar with it – it is familiar with me.  I shall ride it forrrreeevvvver!”

The other woman decided to jump off the ride, her head was spinning and once she was off she stood back and noticed that the ride did not look as it had when she had first seen it. Perhaps it was the discovery of another rider.  Instead of being glad to encounter and share the ride with someone else it took something away from the experience.  The experience had been personal and with the discovery of someone else, it just wasn’t the same.  The merry go round could only play one song – over and over and over again.  It didn’t have another.  She guessed that with her disappointment of finding another rider was also the wish that the horses would do a “Mary Poppins” type maneuver and jump right off its bearings and take her for a beautiful ride through the country side.  But its bearings firmly rooted and held the ride in its place and it would always be stuck right where it was.  Not only would it remain where it was but there would be another rider riding it forever.

Life has fullness to it you choose whether or not you want to stay stuck going round and around in a circle with the same song playing throughout the course of your life or whether you want to “ride through the country side, galloping with the wind at your back.”  You can remain in mediocrity or step out into brilliance taking charge of your life. The beautiful thing about life are the choices we are each able to make. One woman contentedly decided to stay in her place of comfort and ride the carousel forever (which may have been the only expectation she had ever had for herself, and doesn’t necessarily mean she made the wrong choice - for her).  The other woman decided that after the initial joy and high of the ride, it lacked satisfaction (continuously going round and around to the same ol’ song, headed nowhere) she chose to continue on to find beauty in life's journey before her… A journey that would challenge, inspire and encourage her and make her feel as though no matter what the song she was fulfilling her dreams and her calling for life.  Which woman are you?  Or perhaps you are the carousel itself? Now there is something to ponder… Are you satisfied with the ride you are on? Or has it come to a stand still?  Are you happy in the direction you are going or do you feel as though there has to be something more and if so - what are you doing about it?