Through Painted Deserts: Light, God, and Beauty on the Open Road

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Through Painted Deserts: Light, God, and Beauty on the Open Road

3.9 of 5 stars 3.90 · rating details · 4,489 ratings · 303 reviews

From the author of "Blue Like Jazz" comes a road-trip memoir about three months spent crossing the country in a Volkswagen camping van, wondering out-loud if there is more to life than nine-to-five jobs, than the ruts the entire world seems to be stuck in. Follow Don and Paul as they dive headlong into the deepest of human questions and find answers outside words―answers t...more

Paperback, 272 pages

Published August 1st 2005 by Thomas Nelson Publishers

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Feb 26, 2009 Megan rated it 5 of 5 stars

My new favorite author Donald Miller (he wrote Blue Like Jazz) and his friend Paul take a road trip from Texas to Oregon. Miller believes all of us must leave home at some point to discover who we are really meant to be. This book is a part of his journey towards himself and God.

Miller feels most of us get caught asking "how" in life. How do I get a good job? How do I find a good wife? How do I buy a nice house? Yet Miller asks the "why" questions, which make his life more difficult. Why do I ne...more

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May 04, 2013 Cindy rated it 5 of 5 stars

At the age of 21 Donald Miller decides to leave the life he knows in Houston, Texas by riding with a friend Paul in his Volkswagen van to Portland, Oregon. They leave with a few places they think that they might want to stop and visit, but leave with no itinerary or time frame. The road trip that the two embark on is full of beautifully described scenery, interesting people and creative introspection into the meaning of life and existence of God. Paul and Donald start off as casual friends, but...more

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Mar 16, 2013 MT rated it 3 of 5 stars

When I reached the end of this book, I wished I had seen the third from the last sentence in the book before I had begun...so for our benefit, this is what Mr. Miller says at the end regarding this book "I wanted to take a break from the deep theological stuff and just take you on an old journey I took once and introduce you to some wonderful people."

It is easy to enjoy a Donald Miller book as his writing style is so conversational and his ability to story tell is great. But to me what makes him...more

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Aug 29, 2012 Lisa rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: great-selections

I've read all of Donald Miller's books, other than To Own a Dragon which was about his struggle with his absentee father. This author ranks in my top 5 favorites because for me, he gets to the very heart of faith. His honest, authentic writing about his faith and relationship with God, his questioning, yet still believing, his stories and the open and real way he conveys his thoughts and emotions resonate with my own journey. I cannot recommend Donald Miller highly enough.

I read 'Through Painted...more

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May 07, 2012 Sara Salfrank rated it 4 of 5 stars

I was temporarily drawn away from my resolution to finish the unfinished books on my own shelves when I saw this one on my friend’s and stole it. Donald Miller is one of my favorite authors, and this reflective, journal-memoir, essay style of writing a la Anne Lamott really appeals to me as well.
I am pretty sure I even have a celebrity crush on Donald Miller (are authors celebrities?) and that I would be in love with him if I were not married, if he was not somewhat famous, if we lived on the s...more

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Dec 06, 2010 Evan rated it 2 of 5 stars

I had to put this book down. I loved Blue Like Jazz, and saw this book for $5 at a used bookstore right before a long bus trip. This book was great, while I was on the bus. All the feelings of traveling and doing something new, hopes, dreams etc...make this book enjoyable. That is when you might actually care about all the "fluff" that this book contains about Miller's own road trip with his friend. I found that once I got home and tried to read it, I felt like it was a waste of time. reading fo...more

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Jul 05, 2010 Debbie Petersen rated it 2 of 5 stars

I feel badly giving Donald Miller only two stars for this one after falling in love with him a little after reading Blue Like Jazz. It had some pleasant moments but read like someone's personal journal from a road trip. There was a lot of detail that was not really interesting or pertinent to the story, and nothing much really happens. I was irritated with some of his behavior toward the end...telling a high schooler he loves her? He doesn't really go deep here except for the author's note at th...more I feel badly giving Donald Miller only two stars for this one after falling in love with him a little after reading Blue Like Jazz. It had some pleasant moments but read like someone's personal journal from a road trip. There was a lot of detail that was not really interesting or pertinent to the story, and nothing much really happens. I was irritated with some of his behavior toward the end...telling a high schooler he loves her? He doesn't really go deep here except for the author's note at the beginning. If only the entire book read like this:

No, life cannot be understood flat on a page. It has to be lived; a person has to get out of his head, has to fall in love, has to memorize poems, has to jump off bridges into rivers, has to stand in an empty desert and whisper sonnets under his breath...It's a living book, this life; it folds out in a million settings,cast with a billion beautiful characters, and it is almost over for you. It doesn't matter how old you are; it is coming to a close quickly, and soon the credits will roll and all your friends will fold out of your funeral and drive back to their homes in cold and still and silence. And they will make a fire and pour some wine and think about how you once were...and feel a kind of sickness that you never again will be.

So soon you will be in that part of the book where you are holding the bulk of the pages in your left hand, and only a thin wisp of the story on your right. You will know by the page count, not by the narrative, that the Author is wrapping things up. You begin to mourn it's ending, and want to pace yourself slowly toward it's closure, knowing the last lines will speak of something beautiful, of the end of something long and earned, and you hope the thing closes out like last breaths, like whispers about how much and who the characters have come to love, and how authentic the sentiments feel when they have earned a hundred pages of qualification.

And so my prayer is that your story will have involved some leaving and some coming home, some summer and some winter, some roses blooming out like children in a play. My hope is your story will be about changing, about getting something beautiful born inside of you, about learning to love a woman or a man, about learning to love a child, about moving yourself around water, around mountains, around friends, about learning to love others more than we love ourselves, about learning oneness as a way of understanding God. We get one story, you and I, and one story alone. God has established the elements, the setting, the climax and the resolution. It would be a crime not to venture out, wouldn't it?

It may be time for you to go. It might be time to change, to shine out. I want to repeat one word for you:

LEAVE.

Roll the word around on your tongue for a bit. It is a beautiful word, isn't it? So strong and forceful, the way you have always wanted to be. And you will not be alone. You have never been alone. Don't worry. Everything will still be here when you get back. It is you who will have changed.

(less)

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Jul 25, 2011 Nathan added it

This was my least favorite (and I think the least well written) of Miller's books. Still, it has its moments, and I did enjoy it.

"Maybe we're all on a pilgrimage," Miller writes. "Maybe it's all one big road trip through the cosmos, through the nothingness. Maybe we're all going somewhere. Or really, maybe we are all being taken somewhere."

Two guys (Miller and his new friend Paul) load up in a 70's VW box van. They voyage from Houston to the Grand Canyon to Portland--in a quest for God along the...more

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Mar 19, 2011 Tad Hopp rated it 5 of 5 stars

I happen to be a big fan of Donald Miller's previous book, Blue Like Jazz, so I was looking forward to reading this as soon as I stumbled across it at the library. It did not disappoint. Miller is a fascinating writer and he really does a great job describing the trip and the adventures he has and the people he encounters. I love taking road trips and so I already started out loving just the premise of this book. The idea of taking time off from real life and responsibilities to take a cross-cou...more

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Jan 09, 2013 Christopher rated it 4 of 5 stars

I've read a lot of reviews on this book, and they are very mixed. I think what effects people negatively is that the book isn't as brilliant as "Jazz or "Thousand Years" or "Searching." And I knew that going in. This would be No. 4. It's probably one of the reasons Miller rewrote it, to an extent. But it's a good read to fill in some of the gaps between the other books, and provides some insight into Miller's early life. Mostly, it shows a very nice evolution of the writer, and how he's reached...more

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Dec 13, 2012 Harman rated it 4 of 5 stars

This definitely didn't have as great of an impact on me as Blue Like Jazz did, but I'd venture to say that that's due more to the fact that Blue LIke Jazz was written to challenge his readers whereas this reads more as a travel journal that dabbles in metaphysics and poetry. That being said, the two afore-mentioned books appealed to two different sides of me, so I'd say I liked both equally as well.
Through Painted Deserts is beautiful in content and it is well written. It's engaging, which is a...more

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Apr 18, 2012 Corrinne rated it 2 of 5 stars

The only thing that forced me to continue reading this book, was the prospect of ripping it apart in this review. I actually have been fantasizing about this moment since last night as I painfully continued to read the last few chapters of this lame excuse for a book.

I hated Don throughout this entire book. For someone writing a book about themselves, he sure managed to make himself look like a completely arrogant, selfish, materialistic, and self-involved Christian who thinks he is owed someth...more The only thing that forced me to continue reading this book, was the prospect of ripping it apart in this review. I actually have been fantasizing about this moment since last night as I painfully continued to read the last few chapters of this lame excuse for a book.

I hated Don throughout this entire book. For someone writing a book about themselves, he sure managed to make himself look like a completely arrogant, selfish, materialistic, and self-involved Christian who thinks he is owed something more than just a job, family, and material wealth. Wow, what a revelation Don, your journey on the road actually made you realize that there is more to life than that? Wowee, those are some really profound thoughts...My second problem with this book, other than the horrible character development-- was the whole "god is what makes life poetic," "A stranger helped us fix our van, god made this happen," "God is beautiful we must love him," "God gives us the answer to the 'why' questions in life." God, God, God, God, God. PuH-lease. Every time Don and Paul experienced a stroke of good luck or charity, Don attributed it God; pretty much in every other sentence--his faith in god becomes renewed. Really Don?
You got a free breakfast at a diner, and god made this happen? That is some original writing. Utterly mind blowing.

Yes, I am an atheist. Reading books that have Christian influences and themes does not bother me at all. In fact, I always try to read books that challenge my ideas instead of just reinforcing them. I was told this book wasn't too preachy. That is somewhat true. However, Don's constant battle between believing in god or accepting that life is "meaningless" (in his eyes), is just weak and tired.

This guy is not a bad writer. I like his style. But there was just too much fluff; his character development was not deep, his "pilgrimage" on the road (consisting of Arizona, California, and Oregon) was un-inspiring--only reflecting the fact that he has no real insight to offer. Don is just the ultimate example of a white-male growing up in Christian suburbia finding out that there is more to life than a job, kids, and capitalism. Mind-blowing.

(less)

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Aug 03, 2011 Mark rated it 4 of 5 stars

An entertaining read, but not nearly as good as I was expecting based on two other books of his which I read in previous years. I suspect this work may have been rejected by the publishers prior to Miller gaining his well-deserved reputation as a writer, and resubmitted later.

MIller's musings here belong to the "road/journey" genre. In places his words wax poetically and profoundly. At other times he comes across as an immature, self-absorbed, and irresponsible smart-aleck (enjoying God in the...more

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Jul 21, 2010 Kjersti rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-i-own

As I started out on this book, I thought to myself "this has to be the best book I have ever read". And truth be told - it is a very good book. It's very well written, every passage lures you in and makes you feel like you're together with them, sharing your few dollars and scratching your head trying to figure out why the engine won't work. I even caught myself laughing out loud at some passages - at the airport!

However. The book promises a lot, but doesn't really conclude. Perhaps someone from...more

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Aug 08, 2012 Kaysi rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone!

Shelves: read-in-2012

This was just a good, refreshing read. Last September I went on a week-long vacation with my parents in which we visited Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon, and the Grand Canyon, and all three of us found it so refreshing to simply be removed from our usual daily grind and to be out among the beauty of God's creation, reminded of how great He is and how small we are and yet experiencing not a sense of insignificance because of it but a sense of love in that the God who creates such magnificent sce...more

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Aug 20, 2009 Candice rated it 5 of 5 stars

Another home run by Donald Miller. What's great about this book is that it was written well before Blue Like Jazz and Searching for God Knows What, so having read those two first I kind of know how Don's "story" ends; and Through Painted Deserts is how his story begins, aka how Don Miller first starts to question his relationship with God outside of American Christian rhetoric. Through Painted Deserts is a beautiful journal, essentially, that Don kept as he traveled 3 months with his good friend...more

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Aug 26, 2012 Mark rated it 3 of 5 stars

I enjoyed Don Miller's Blue LIke Jazz and Searching for God Knows What. Both were enjoyable, easy reads containing good writing. And, Don Miller will ask some challenging questions of Christians, especially those who are cultural Christians.

Through Painted Deserts continues this tradition. As two young men journey from Houston, Texas to Oregon, Don Miller provides us with details which make you feel as if you are sitting with them. My favorite excerpt from this book was the description of Las Ve...more I enjoyed Don Miller's Blue LIke Jazz and Searching for God Knows What. Both were enjoyable, easy reads containing good writing. And, Don Miller will ask some challenging questions of Christians, especially those who are cultural Christians.

Through Painted Deserts continues this tradition. As two young men journey from Houston, Texas to Oregon, Don Miller provides us with details which make you feel as if you are sitting with them. My favorite excerpt from this book was the description of Las Vegas:

"Nevada has no ocean. You come over dune and dune and no water washes up on no shore. Las Vegas is an island of lights and trickery, and the desert laps against it on four sides. Trucks are ships, barges, coming in from foreign continents, a subtle, odd reminder that some other kind of life exists, some sort of normality. Desert winds wash tourists up on casino shores to gawk at the natives, entertainers, gamling addicts, magicians, and scantily dresse women, showmen who can't sell albums anymore, vague memories of Elvis and Neil Diamond. It is an oasis for hard-luck cases who spend small fortunes on a shortcut to the the American dream. P.T. Barnum, eat your heart out. This is a circus too heavy to travel. The show doen't come to the people; the people come to the show."

This excerpt comes from a point in the book where he realizes he is thankful to God for the simple things. During this trip, he and his friend, Paul, have traveled on $300 and a hard-luck down VW van. No hotels, no hot meals three times per day. Upon arriving in Oregon, they are living under the stars working at a camp.

"If a man's sense are either sharpened or dulled by the way he rubs against time, mine have become increasingly sharp over the last three weeks. I am hungry, so I appreciate food and thank God for it whenever I find ice cream or other perishables in a condo I am cleaning. I appreciate friendship and dont need a television to keep me company. I appreciate birds chirping, as there is no radio to seduce my ears. I appreciate God, because i live in the house He has made, as opposed to a house I purchased by my own means."

One issue I have with this book is the Lordship of Christ. In today's world, Don Miller is trying to present a relational God which is an accurate characteristic of God. God is our Father. However, in reading, you almost get the sense of I can accept this or not. That's not the imagery of the Bible. Christ's rule will spread as the water covers the seas. This is just a tendency of all Christians, to accept the attributes/descriptions of God which we are comfortable with and avoid the ones we are not.

The other issue is how the book presents an open road, pilgrimage lifestyle as the only way to sharpen one's focus on God. Yes, we are all distracted by our 10,000 item to do lists on a hourly basis. Life is moving at supersonic speeds. But, that is what congregational worship is about. Once per week, setting aside these lists; slowing life down to a crawl and focusing on the worship of the One who created you. You don't need to be starving in the woods to realize your relationship with your Creator.

All things aside, the book was a good read - one you can quickly do in an afternoon. For a quick read, the book is enjoyable and worth your time. (less)

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Jan 16, 2012 Sharayah rated it 3 of 5 stars

There were some really interesting thoughts in this book, but I didn't feel like I connected with them very well. This book is a sort of a memoir of a road trip from Texas to Oregon, and Donald Miller talks about how much it sucks sometimes to be self-aware, to be asking 'why' questions instead of just 'how' questions. That I can relate to. Lots of the ideas in this book have to do with growing up and, to use a term I really hate, "finding yourself", and I can relate on that level. But some of t...more

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May 04, 2010 Heather rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviewed

Unlike his other books, Blue Like Jazz and Searching for God Knows What, this book is based solely on Donald Miller's personal journey from Texas to Portland. It is a story about two men taking a roadtrip through the western states, and the sometimes hilarious and poignant moments of life and faith that occur along the way. While not as theologically-based as his other books, it still contains his meandering thoughts on God and ultimately discusses the neverending why questions we sometimes face...more

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May 02, 2009 Craig rated it 2 of 5 stars

This book was severely overrated.

Where Donald Miller is so cool in Blue Like Jazz, he comes across as a complete jerk in this book.

He's that city guy that I hate. Apparently everyone from small towns is dumb, not smart, and their lives suck because they live in a small town.

Also, is extremely pretentious throughout the book and there was no point to the book.

The Grand Canyon part was really good, though. He should have just written a novella about that part.

Anywhoo, if you want to read a good tr...more

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Craig I believe so. He was just exceptionally condescending to everyone in the small towns.

He assumed the waitress only worked at the tiny diner because she...more
May 07, 2009 12:53pm

Kenzie I thought the two men were very grateful for Ben fixing their van. After they left, Paul (I believe that's his name, it's been a month since I've read...more
Jul 11, 2009 07:56pm

Dec 13, 2012 Derek Jordan rated it 3 of 5 stars

I read Blue Like Jazz a good while back and enjoyed the challenge that it offered in love towards others. There is a thin line is loving and condemning.

His casual tell tale way of writing about his life in a way that just takes you on the trip that he went on and learn a bit about what he took from it is quite amazing, even in this first book.

This is all about a trip through the desert and the the thoughts that occurred to him as he traveled. I find his prose artistic and as well thought provo...more

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Apr 07, 2013 Mitchell Cooper rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: spirituality

When I bought this book at a second-hand book sale, I had no idea what it was about, except there was a road-trip through the American West in an old VW bus. True, the book is about a journey but it is more than a physical moving from point A to point B. Donald Miller touches on many subjects, many big "why are we here?" to small "the merits of breakfast cereal", but his prose is always beautifully constructed to give the reader a crisp mental image.

This book hooked me on many levels, including:...more

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Aug 15, 2012 J.E. Jr. rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: kindle-books, memoir

What hasn’t heard of Donald Miller in the last 6 or 8 years? After hitting the scene with the still-popular Blue Like Jazz: Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality, he continues to be a known and respected writer in the Christian sub-culture.

I own Blue Like Jazz, but I’ve never read it. Through Painted Deserts was my first Donald Miller memoir; perhaps that’s fitting, since it is essentially a re-edited edition of HIS first Donald Miller memoir, Prayer And The Art Of Volkswagen Maintenan ...more

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Jan 11, 2012 Susan rated it 5 of 5 stars

I have to admit that this book touched me because I read it at the right time in my life. This book is a travel journal that Don keeps while driving from Houston to Oregon. I read it while traveling from Texas to Utah. It reminded me of "travels with Charlie". Don has a very understated style. Starting with his descriptions of the sights, sounds and smells of suburban Houston, to West Texas, to the desert southwest, ..... he used geography as a surreal backdrop for his wandering heart. I happen...more

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Mar 14, 2009 Drew Lochhead rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book made me want to sell everything, buy a VW van, get my own dog and travel the country with no agenda. Essentially, "the entitled rich kid's after college dream." Some day I will get there. A great book about traveling, God, and big questions. One of the things that will stick with me from this book is at a point where he talks about Marriage as this beautiful companionship. He was able to describe marriage as I have always thought about it. It is pretty amazing to experience that now wi...more

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Jan 27, 2013 Liz rated it 3 of 5 stars

My big takeaway from Through Painted Deserts is to hike the Grand Canyon.

MIller and his friend Paul take a road-trip from Houston, TX to Black Butte, OR in a busted Volkswagen bus. At first I was tempted to categorize TPD as Miller's journey of finding himself, but that didn't quite fit. He self-identifies their sojourn as a pilgrimage. TPDmeanders through thoughts about God, friendship, limitations, girls, and living everyday.

Enjoyable as a diversionary read when your mind needs to relax.

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Nov 28, 2009 J.M. Blevins rated it 1 of 5 stars

It's hard to follow up something so beautiful yet empty as "Blue Like Jazz," so don't expect anything except some nice words and semi-interesting thoughts on a page. I'm not jealous I didn't write this one, but I'm not that good of a writer and I feel like I could have done better. I'm happy he got to get out of Portland for a while, but it seems like he needs to stay in the rain to keep that jazz from getting dried out.

Either that or I got sick of the whole searching for God sounding like Holde...more

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Oct 10, 2012 Scott Lake rated it 4 of 5 stars

There are poignant moments throughout this book. Many of these give me pause and wonder; no covet is the more appropriate word. I covet Miller's chance that he and Paul took to simply go see without a real plan. My world is consumed in paying for offspring's college bills, in waiting for dance lessons to be over with, in helping the industrial world to save their hearing from noises which we generate and perhaps shouldn't. I wouldn't trade my world for the open road, but I know there is a small...more

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Mar 11, 2012 Erunion rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 21st-century, biographies, memoirs, own, religion, slice-of-life, theology

I have not read Blue Like Jazz: Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality, and I think that might be part of why I ended up not getting this book.

It is interesting, though. It follows a lot of the traditional rites of passage young men go through, particularly the famed "road trip" that American men have wanted to participate in ever since the automobile was invented, or at least since Kerouac released On the Road.

But that is part of what confuses me. Miller frames the book wonderfully in...more

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Jun 27, 2011 Amy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: thought-provoking

I may have been a bit biased going into this book and admit that my expectations were very, very high. Donald Miller is a beautiful story teller, and while many may expect TPD to be like his most famous work, Blue Like Jazz, there are several distinctive differences which make this book a force all its own. TPD follows Miller in his early twenties as he and a friend embark on a cross-country road trip. It is during this voyage that Miller discovers friendship, beauty and God in everyday occurren...more

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About Donald Miller

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

Donald Miller grew up in Houston, Texas. Leaving home at the age of twenty-one, he traveled across the country until he ran out of money in Portland, Oregon, where he lives today.

Harvest House Publishers released his first book, Prayer and the Art of Volkswagen Maintenance, in 2000. Two years later, after havin...more Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

Donald Miller grew up in Houston, Texas. Leaving home at the age of twenty-one, he traveled across the country until he ran out of money in Portland, Oregon, where he lives today.

Harvest House Publishers released his first book, Prayer and the Art of Volkswagen Maintenance, in 2000. Two years later, after having audited classes at Portland’s Reed College, Don wrote Blue Like Jazz, which would slowly become a New York Times Bestseller.

In 2004 Don released Searching for God Knows What a book about how the Gospel of Jesus explains the human personality. Searching has become required reading at numerous colleges across the country. In 2005 he released Through Painted Deserts the story of he and a friends road trip across the country. In 2006, he added another book, To Own A Dragon, which offered Miller's reflections on growing up without a father. This book reflected an interest already present in Donald's life, as he founded the The Mentoring Project (formerly the Belmont Foundation)–a non-profit that partners with local churches to mentor fatherless young men.

Don has teamed up with Steve Taylor and Ben Pearson to write the screenplay for Blue Like Jazz which will be filmed in Portland in the spring of 2008 and released thereafter.

Don is the founder of The Belmont Foundation, a not-for-profit foundation which partners with working to recruit ten-thousand mentors through one-thousand churches as an answer to the crisis of fatherlessness in America.

A sought-after speaker, Don has delivered lectures to a wide-range of audiences including the Women of Faith Conference, the Veritas Forum at Harvard University and the Veritas Forum at Cal Poly. In 2008, Don was asked to deliver the closing prayer on Monday night at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, Colorado.

Don’s next book, A Million Miles in a Thousand Years humorously and tenderly chronicles Don’s experience with filmmakers as they edit his life for the screen, hoping to make it less boring. When they start fictionalizing Don’s life for film–changing a meandering memoir into a structured narrative–the real-life Don starts a journey to edit his actual life into a better story. A Million Miles in a Thousand Years details that journey and challenges readers to reconsider what they strive for in life. It shows how to get a second chance at life the first time around.(less)

More about Donald Miller...

Books by Donald Miller

Blue Like Jazz: Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality

A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life

To Own a Dragon: Reflections on Growing Up Without a Father

Prayer and the Art of Volkswagen Maintenance: Finding God on the Open Road

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Quotes from Through Painted Desert...

“Everybody has to leave, everybody has to leave their home and come back so they can love it again for all new reasons.” — 297 people liked it

“And so my prayer is that your story will have involved some leaving and some coming home, some summer and some winter, some roses blooming out like children in a play. My hope is your story will be about changing, about getting something beautiful born inside of you about learning to love a woman or a man, about learning to love a child, about moving yourself around water, around mountains, around friends, about learning to love others more than we love ourselves, about learning oneness as a way of understanding God. We get one story, you and I, and one story alone. God has established the elements, the setting and the climax and the resolution. It would be a crime not to venture out, wouldn't it?

It might be time for you to go. It might be time to change, to shine out.

I want to repeat one word for you:
Leave.

Roll the word around on your tongue for a bit. It is a beautiful word, isn't it? So strong and forceful, the way you have always wanted to be. And you will not be alone. You have never been alone. Don't worry. Everything will still be here when you get back. It is you who will have changed.” — 215 people liked it

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