Nearly a decade ago my husband and I decided to leave a very comfortable life in search of a little adventure.  We were musicians living and gigging in Chicago and had amassed quite a music teaching studio.

Life was good.  We walked to the grocery store.  We took naps at random times during the day.  We played music.  Money flowed.

But something was missing.  At first we couldn’t figure out why we had this nagging feeling that we needed to change up our life.  Everything was great.  But then I found it…

As my husband walked through the door one evening I exclaimed, “Honey, we are moving to Australia.  There is a solar energy engineering program there.  It is the only one in the world and you can apply.”

Within a few days he submitted his application and it was accepted.  We sent off our passports, started packing our bags, and got the needed chest x-rays to go to Australia on a student visa.

The weeks flew by!  As we told people most raised their eyebrows and thought we were crazy.  We knew we were, but the thrill of the adventure was huge!

Then it hit me…

The night before we were leaving to take all of our stuff to his parents house and fly out to Australia, I broke down in tears.  For the first time ever, the fear of the unknown hit me.  As I sat there sobbing, I wondered if we made the right decision.  I wondered if we were just being impulsive and crazy.  I wondered if I would regret leaving it all later.

As I fell asleep, the tears dried on my face and my husband held my hand.

The next morning I awoke ready to go, recharged and full of enthusiasm.

Soon we boarded a plane and here is what greeted us on the other side…

Needless to say, the year we lived in Australia was the best year of our lives!

Nothing prepares you for living in another country, even when the language is shared.  You learn better who you are and you learn to better appreciate others.

You also learn that life is meant to be experienced and sometimes the best thing you can do is get out of your routine.

Fast forward 11 years and we are going back to Australia again…this time with kids…3 kids to be exact.  Twin 11 year olds and a 2 year old.

The excitement is the same.  The thrill is there.  But this time, the fear is a little bigger.  It is not just me and my husband anymore.  We have 3 other people depending upon us.  And quite frankly, that is a little nerve-wracking.

Yes, there is more fear this time as we have more responsibilities as parents.

But that IS just it.  We do have a bigger responsibility.  We have a bigger responsibility to our kids to show them that anything is possible in life.

We have a responsibility to show them that sometimes you don’t follow the crowd.  Sometimes you break the mold.  Sometimes you leave your comfort zone.

We have a responsibility to show our kids that even though fear might be present, following your heart will be one of the best decisions you can make.  We have a responsibility to go out there and experience life at its fullest.

So we are letting go of our fear, but first we are thanking fear for being present in our lives because of this…

Fear isn’t something to run away from.  Fear is something that keeps you on your toes.  Fear keeps you in check, as it often means you care.

Fear is only something negative when you let it overtake your happiness, when you let it rob your dreams.  If you didn’t have some fear about making a big decision then wouldn’t it mean you don’t really care?

So now as we make our preparations for leaving on our Gap Year where we travel the world with our kids and spend a year reconnecting as a family, I don’t worry about the times fear creeps in, I thank it for reminding me that I care.  And that makes the exciting and good moments all the better.

To your dreams,

Summer, Jeff, C,D, and A

Now it’s your turn…

When was a time that you let go of fear and found something amazing waiting for you?

Share your story in the comments below.  By sharing your story you will inspire others to know that anything is possible.