Bringing Mae Flowers

I’ve found that there are two types of people who take risks.

The first is the person who has nothing left to lose. They have no money and no way to earn it. They have no real support and nowhere and nothing to call their own. They aren’t seeking fulfillment or experiences, but survival. But, if they happen to find happiness along the way, all the better. I wouldn’t call this type of person “adventurous”, as they lean toward optimistic desperation. They make the best of a bad situation, and look for opportunities wherever they can find them.

The second type of person already has security.

This person knows no matter what leaps they take, there will always be somewhere safe to fall. They have financial security from family, or their own money, that serve as a cushion against most consequences. They can travel freely, knowing that a plane ticket won’t hinder their ability to feed themselves. They can lose a job without worrying about keeping a roof over their heads. They may struggle here and there, but at the end of the day, they know they are a phone call away from help. And that is a beautiful thing.

I am neither of these people.

I worked hard to have something worth losing. My desperation isn’t to have something, but to hold on to what I have. And my safety net has holes. I do have support, but it wouldn’t hold for long. I have savings that I’ve painstakingly saved up over the years, but that could only cover one temporary mistake– not a lifetime of them. And while I do have a loving family I could turn to, money and space are tight. Help would be too much of a burden to ask for. As a result, I’m willing to take calculated chances that I know I can recover from.

I don’t think we have to choose either/or.

People like to talk in absolutes: “you are either this or that”, but that limitation fails to acknowledge a whole world of spectrum in between. The reality is, very few people are forced to choose between the two. Most of us manage to strike a balance between adventure and security. For example: I like to travel, but I won’t put myself into debt to do it. I also like to try new things, but always do a quick risk assessment first. Adventurous doesn’t have to mean “reckless”, and security doesn’t have to be boring.

The question isn’t whether we seek security or adventure; the real question is, how are balancing both?