When you look at this photo do you see a woman in danger? Do you fear for her as she crosses the street where cars and trucks routinely pass? Most likely not. Crossing the street is a simple enough task. It is one most of us do at least once a day.

Although perhaps not quite as fashionably as the woman moving across this street, headed somewhere with purpose and confidence. She doesn’t need to look twice, she knows that within the safety of this crosswalk and by moving at the right time she will make it on to her next destination.

What if it wasn’t a marked street she was crossing, but a four lane highway? She would still be completing the same task – crossing the street. Yet our minds would sense danger, our bodies would tense, and our thoughts might fill with concern for the woman’s wellbeing, both physical and mental. The safety of walking across the road is gone as the signs and signals vanish, the marked walkway is withdrawn, and traffic increases.

We live a life full of risk. Sometimes it is as controlled as crossing a well-marked street. Other times we find ourselves standing in the middle of life’s highway with no clear sign of how to get out of danger or to our destination. It’s through life and experience that we begin to be able to read the signals around us. Hunting for the signs of where we can safely take a chance and step out on our way.

Sometimes that might mean taking time to look and see the designated path in front of us, or pausing our lives just long enough to wait for the signal to light up saying we can cross the road. Other days it might mean being humble enough to ask for help and brave enough to trust the subtle but consistent signals our life gives us about the path we should take.

This photo is more than just a beautiful woman crossing the road with a sense of purpose. It’s a reminder to us of the things we can confidently do when we have the right assistance in place to guide us, and enough experience to find and follow the signs laid out before us.