Crossing the Threshold

I believe that the satisfaction in our accomplishments comes more from the process of getting there rather than the result. I recently gave a speech to a crowd of more than a thousand people at a suicide prevention walk in Boston. I had the opportunity to share my story- the struggles I once had with mental health issues and the depression that had broken me to the point of suicide. But beyond that, I had the opportunity to stand before a crowd, filled with focused eyes and attentive ears, and tell them that today I no longer struggle; today I am well.

That afternoon, I set out to take this photo. I trudged through freezing water up to my waste and sank in mud that reached my knees. I fell while carrying the structure I had built to support the door. I scraped my legs on rocks beneath the water and cut my knuckles while getting the door to balance. I pulled fallen branches away from the area and dug up sticks that protruded from the water’s surface. When I returned to the shore, I sat on the ground exhausted and emotionally drained from the day. My clothes were soaked through. My body shivered with cold. Mud smeared across my skin, and blood ran from my fingers.

I sat alone staring at the vision I had seen in my mind for so long- a door that seemed impossible to get to. A door that appeared so out of place that many would not believe it was even there. A door that each of us possesses within us. One that may not always be easy to find, but one that is always worth searching for. And when we finally do find it, when we reach for the handle and take our first step forward, we finally see that our satisfaction comes not in crossing the threshold, but in the journey it took to get there.

Craig Miller

Craig is an award winning author, speaker, and photographer and was featured in the S-Word Documentary. You can learn more about Craig and his work at ThisIsHowItFeels.com.