A Second Chance

Debbie Lozare in Tips and Advices

May 23, 2020 • 2 min Read

You make it, you fall, you get up. Repeat. That is what a second chance provides. But what if you make it, and fall again? Do we get up and try all over once more?

One of my favorite Charles Schulz’ Peanuts cartoon is that of Lucy asking Snoopy to hold on to her red balloon while she takes her lunch. By the afternoon, Snoopy has gotten drowsy and lets out a yawn. The balloon escapes and slowly floats away. The last panel shows him with a ball of clothes on a stick, walking down a railway, and saying, “Make one mistake and you pay for it the rest of your life.” Not very hopeful, eh?

I have suffered irreparable damage in my years of living on this earth. I have made bad decisions due to fear, bitterness, and self-destructive motives. I married too early to a man I barely knew. I uttered malicious words that cut a friend’s heart to shreds. I had angry encounters with people who did not matter in my life. I took wrong advices. I made horrendous mistakes in reckless abandonment of all that I learned as a child. I forgot to trust God. I reined in pride, and let loose a wicked tongue. I praised others more than I did myself.

Do I deserve a second chance? Yes.

I paid for my mistakes, some I will bear the burden for the rest of my life. But I can still make things right again. The scars are there to remind me of battles I have fought, sometimes bravely, oftentimes fearfully, but all the time thinking — even in the worst moments of my struggles — that I am never alone. Never.

In the end, the lessons I learned at the feet of prayerful grandparents, good words from a father who tried his best, the unfailing and unconditional commitment of a mother who fought for her own, and the awesome learnings from a brother, from sisters, teachers, great friends, and a daughter who loved me nonetheless — all these show me that I am worthy of a second chance.

I just need to turn around from the crossing of indecision and trudge on back home where love lives and keeps me safe.

A second chance is a marvelous thing. We all deserve it. I deserve it.