Some people are able to dive into freezing water without hesitation. Others take time to accumulate to the temperature in order to avoid the breathtaking sensation, which you can only experience in a ice cold lake. And then there are those who wait all summer for the water to warm up, and realize too late that they never went for a swim.

I’m writing this post in the end of September, and soon I have no choice but to admit the summer is over. Lake water didn’t get warm enough for me this summer, and I didn’t get the chance to take a dive. I missed the entire summer because I waited for too long for the perfect moment.

It’s not the first time in my life that I’ve procrastinated for too long. I need to think about it, let me plan this first, hold on, I want this to be perfect. Familiar words in my vocabulary. I’ve used most of my life planning, dreaming and procrastinating, instead of just seizing the moment and taking a dive. One spring I fell into a lake just days after it was still frozen. The cold took my breath away and my clothes got wet, but that summer I didn’t waste sunny days waiting. Sometimes it’s worth a while to just go for it.

Today, I am metaphorically dipping my toes in water. Instead of dreaming about things, I’ve decided to actually experience them. Instead of waiting for someone to plant a pair of wings on my back and teach me to fly, I’m going to take measures to strengthen the wings I already have. Instead of waiting for the water to become warm enough, I am taking a step away from the shore, into the cool water.

In the autumn, the lake is filled with colour.