Lead or follow – how do you know?

Do you ever feel like you’re so far behind that you’ll never catch up? That everyone else is so far ahead you wonder if you’re even on the right path? I did…until I learned an important lesson this week after getting lost in a national park.

 

It started off with the realization that we’re half way through our month in Croatia and there’s still so many things we want to see! A group of ten of us rented two cars and headed north to Plitvice Lakes, the largest and most visited National Park.

 

It was an easy three-hour drive (on the right-hand side of the road) and we arrived before lunch. We paid the entrance fee and headed down the trail towards a large waterfall, along a series of wooden boardwalks. Walking over the rushing water sent shivers through my body – the power and beauty was breath-taking.

 

I should also mention that the lovely wooden boardwalks have no railings – very different safety standards than Canadian parks! So yes, the thought of wet wood being slippery and tripping into the waterfall crossed my mind but I remained focused on my steps while cautiously taking in the views.

(Some of the guys were taking video footage as they walked along, oblivious to the potential dangers – I marveled at their confidence and tried to remember if I approached life the same way in my 20s…)

 

The group carried along and I found myself near the back, where the guys were taking their time to capture video footage and even launch a drone camera. We came to a fork in the road – to the left were very steep steps leading into a cave and to the right the path simply carried along. Naturally the guys sprinted up the stairs into the cave but I stood at the bottom debating what to do.

 

The stairs looked slippery and I was scared. I stood there looking on, while my mind filled with questions: Do I follow and risk an injury? Do I stand here and wait? What if the trail continues and I’m left behind? Did the rest of the group go into the cave or did they go right?

 

I waited several minutes but no one returned. I decided the guys were simply taking their time getting footage and the rest of the group must have gone right. I head back towards the path and turned right.

 

As I walked along, trying to hurry to catch the group but watching where I stepped so I didn’t slip into the water, my mind kept racing. Each corner I turned expecting to see my friends but the trail was empty. Maybe they didn’t come this way? I turned around and went back but that trail was empty too.

 

I was alone.

 

I had a map so I was sure I could find my way back but the thought of doing it alone made me nervous. I knew I didn’t want to go into the cave so I had to keep going forward. I turned around and started off again on my own.

 

Suddenly the boardwalk ended and the trail became dirt and rocks. A few steps down the trail I realized it was washed out – the water was over my shoes and I didn’t see any way around. Surely this wasn’t right? I can’t imagine the group came along this trail, did they? The image of the cave behind me reminded me I had to move forward so I stepped into the water.

 

As I cautiously picked my footing over roots and rocks, I heard voices behind me. Yeah, people! It was two older ladies and a black dog. I asked them if I was going the right direction, if they had seen my friends but they didn’t speak English. Not to worry, they were on the path so I no longer felt alone.

 

I followed behind them until we came to another fork – they pointed to the right for me, which led to the ferry, and they continued left. I was on my own again but felt certain I would catch up with my group at the ferry.

 

As I continued along the path (no longer covered in water but an actual smooth path!), I saw the ferry coming. I hurried along, as the ferry ran every 30 minutes and I was already so far behind my group.

 

I arrived at the ferry dock just as they were letting people on but I didn’t recognize anyone. Was I really that far behind? Or did they notice I was missing and went back to find me? I had no idea where they were and decided the best thing to do was follow the map and make my way back to the cars. Eventually they would show up at the cars, right?

 

I took the ferry, hiked up a hill then jumped on a shuttle bus which dropped me off at a view point and signs pointing back to the main entrance. As I walked, alone again, I felt calm. I don’t know why I became separated from my group but there was nothing I could do – I simply accepted it and hoped they weren’t too worried.

 

As I walked along, I saw stairs leading down, down, down into a cave and realized this must be the same cave they had gone into – there was an exit! They could be anywhere in the park by now so I continued with my plan to go back to the cars.

 

When I arrived, there was still no one around. Fortunately, I had the keys so I sat inside and waited. Nearly two hours later they arrived! After a group hug we pieced together what happened.

 

They had all gone into the cave but the cave led to other caves and they spent some time exploring. When they came out, I was gone. They hurried along and saw me get on the ferry, yelling at me to wait but I never heard them.

 

All along I thought I was behind, hurrying to catch up, but in fact, I had been leading! It never occurred to me that I was in front.

 

And I realized this was a valuable life lesson – when we compare ourselves to others, when we get caught up in our fears, when we doubt our abilities, we can feel like we are being left behind. But if we can stop, take a deep breath and look at the big picture, we’ll realize how far we’ve come and that we’ve accomplished so much more than we give ourselves credit for.

 

Over to you! Is there anything you’re struggling with right now, where maybe you could look at it from a different perspective? I’d love to help you see how far you’ve come and how amazing you are!