"OK, yes it's a mistake. I know it's a mistake, but there are certain things in life where you know it's a mistake but you don't really know it's a mistake because the only way to really know it's a mistake is to make the mistake and look back and say 'yep, that was a mistake.' So really, the bigger mistake would be to not make the mistake, because then you'd go your whole life not knowing if something is a mistake or not."
-Lily Aldrin, How I Met Your Mother

Have you ever found yourself standing in front of an opportunity unsure as to whether or not you should go for it? As if the one person you've always wanted to pursue became available? Your dream job opens up across the country or a dog shows up at your front door just looking to be fed?

I think we all experience something like this at least once in our lives, a moment where everything is pointing in the opposite direction but attraction draws us in for the kill. And I get it, it is so incredibly easy to date the guy all of your friends loathe. To take care of the dog you can't afford, or to pick up everything and try out life in a completely different place for the wrong reasons.

And sure, by some miracle, it might work out in your favor or it might end up with you landing on your face.

But at the end of the day, it's a mistake you just have to make

To dive headfirst into whatever it is you seek. To date the guy or girl most likely to leave you at the easiest convenience. To commit to the college for your best friend and not for you.

Because unless we try, we will never know what could have been

I was here not too long ago, and while it ended poorly in my case, I can never be entirely sorry for the opportunity to learn something new about myself. For the opportunity to experience just what everyone else warned me about, but most importantly for the opportunity to ignite change.

Change in who I wanted to become. Change in how I choose to live and an opportunity to never make the mistake again.

Because stories and life lessons are not learned by "almosts" and "what ifs", but by the emotions we feel afterward and the internal battles we face to make sense of whatever just happened.

So regardless of whatever opportunity stands in front of you and regardless of what anyone else thinks. If it's a mistake you have to make, make it anyway (as long as it's legal) and accept the lessons learned later. Afterall, no one else is in control of your life except you and that is as beautiful as it is terrifying.