“Go easy on yourself, darling. You’re in something new.” ~S.C. Lourie
I saw this quote and wanted to share it with you. It definitely resonated with me today.
Everything for me in Florida is new. It’s a new house, a new job, a new town, a new state, new roads to get used to, new way to live by myself and that’s just to name a few.
But how do you live with all the “new” when you still have a big piece of yourself invested in a piece of the “old?”
A big piece of my heart is still attached to something important back home. I can’t change that, it’s a reality, but how do you incorporate that important piece of the “old” into the “new?”
I’m struggling with that a bit today and trying to understand how to do it and do it well.
But for now, I’m going to go easy on myself. I’m in something new.
I love watching people. I love watching their interactions and their expressions. Today at work I saw some pretty awesome stuff.
I saw a couple holding hands over coffee. I saw a couple cracking jokes and laughing with each other. I saw a table of friends talking about their troubles and their good times over breakfast.
You know, it’s moments like these that I smile and think how lucky I am to have witnessed such random, beautiful moments.
The moments are simple, uncomplicated and honest, yet it’s moments like these that I think to myself: “This is what life is all about.”
It’s the day to day routine that can bring the most joy to those involved in it and to those witnessing it.
And today I was blessed to see joy, to see laughter and most of all, to see love.
Keep your eyes open, my loves. You never know what life has to show you.
I woke up this morning, looked into the mirror and said, “What happened to you?” If you’ve been following me you’ll know that I’ve been in a strange place in the last few weeks and I’m not talking about location. I’m talking about my mindset and feeling lost, needing a routine and needing a kick in the pants to get back to where I was with my writing.
So it was no surprise that the girl I saw in the mirror was a bit disappointed in me. It’s as if she was saying “Why’d you let this happen to you? Get back to doing things that make you feel good about yourself and make you feel happy.” And she was right.
I got to thinking about the last few weeks. I’m a girl that loves to wear make-up yet I haven’t had any on in weeks. I didn’t see the reason to put it on if I wasn’t going out. I usually get a pedicure every few weeks but didn’t see the importance of it right now. I haven’t listened to much music lately because I didn’t feel the need to dance.
Now there’s something to think about. Why was that? Why wasn’t I still doing all the things that made me feel good about myself? Was it just because I moved? Was it because I wasn’t working? Was it because I wasn’t going out as much?
Yes and no.
And as I thought about it I changed my mindset. I shouldn’t have to have a reason to do what makes me happy and feel good about myself. I should be the reason.
Suddenly, it all made sense. Circumstances and location shouldn’t matter. Nothing should matter except that it makes me feel good and if I feel good then I can do more good for others. If I’m happy I can share that with the world.
Take my advice and my lesson learned and “do what makes YOU feel good,” no matter what. I’ve realized how important of a piece these things are for me in getting back into a routine.
“You don’t need a reason to do the things that make you feel happy and good about yourself. YOU are the reason! And YOU are a very good reason.”
I’ve been in Delaware for about a month now and have had way too much time to “think” about why I haven’t been writing as much as I used to, why I haven’t finished the final edits on my new book or why I feel so lost.
After much soul searching I got my answer: I lost my routine.
And in losing my “routine” I’ve lost my balance and a little bit of myself.
Back in Jersey I was working full-time and writing in my free time. I don’t miss working the daily grind BUT I do miss the routine. I’d get up everyday at 5:30, grab my coffee and do my hair and makeup as I peered out the window to see the sunrise. I was off to work by 8 and home after 4. It was a “routine.”
The other piece I’m missing is the daily interaction with my boss, co-workers, customers and vendors. I was always meeting someone new and interesting, yet I can remember coming home some days and not wanting to talk to anyone because I was “talked out” from work. Now I long for those days of communication.
It’s quiet here and unless we go out, there’s not much communication with the outside world. There are days that I wish my phone would ring with a friendly voice on the other end just ready for a nice, long conversation.
But it doesn’t and I feel as though I’m left with too much idle time and that’s not me.
This move wasn’t easy but I know that finding a routine here is in my best interest. I’m lost without one. I’m lost without accountability for a job. I’m lost being away from the friends and places that I loved.
Maybe I took too much of that for granted and can now see how important all of that was for me. I can definitely see it now and while there’s no sense in missing it all, there is a sense in being grateful that I had it in the first place.
Today is a new day and I have to push myself to find a new “routine.” I need to make myself accountable for a full time job as a writer. I need to stop feeling lost and find what works for me. And instead of missing my friends and places, I need to incorporate them into a new routine of seeing them when I can.
“Mindset and perspective” are what I’ve been lacking and thankfully this time of feeling lost helped to change mine and hopefully has me moving forward in the right direction.
I believe that “it’s the times we feel most lost in our lives that we’re actually finding ourselves.”
And I believe the last month of feeling lost has helped me to find myself again.
That’s the constant thought in my head every morning that I wake up. I guess you could say that this is my first attempt at following my own advice.
We’ve been in Delaware for three weeks now and they’ve not been the best. My significant other broke two ribs during the move which left the lifting and unpacking to me. Unfortunately, I ended up pulling out my back and suffering with a pinched nerve for 12 days. As you can see, it hasn’t been a smooth transition.
I’m trying to find all the positives in the midst of the pain and turmoil. We’re in a beautiful RV resort for the summer and it’s quite peaceful yet I’m homesick and missing my Jersey Shore a lot!
I feel a little lost here. It’s been an emotional couple of months as I helped my parents move out of our childhood home, moved myself, left my job and moved to another state. I guess I should give myself a pass for feeling the way that I do. It’s not been easy for me and I was so excited for this change! What I’m not happy about is that I haven’t written much since I’ve been here and that was something that I was looking forward to: “retired and writing!”
So here I sit, finally able to “start somewhere.” I’ve missed you all and I hope that this is the beginning of me getting back to ME!
Writing is like breathing to me and I’m so glad that I could share this “first breath” with all of you!
You mean the world to me.
Here’s to “starting somewhere.” I’m feeling grateful that I finally could!
Two weeks ago my brother, sister and I gathered at our childhood home to say good-bye to it. We’d been packing up my parents house for months and the time to bid farewell was upon us. This was the house we grew up in and as my sister and I sat one afternoon in the living room, it suddenly hit us that this was our tie to the Jersey Shore and even though my parents were snowbirds, the grandkids always had a place to stop in the summer for a grilled cheese, to do laundry or just spend time with their grandparents. The same rings true for my brother and sister. I’ve been lucky enough to have lived at the shore all of my life so when they weren’t in Florida, they were home and I was close by. Yet time marches on, life changes and my parents will now be living in Florida full-time. It’s a big change for all of us because the only way we’ll see them now is to visit them there.
It wasn’t easy going through all the things that my parents had saved, yet we certainly had a few laughs along the way. It was a time of remembering our youth and telling old stories.
The same day that I moved from the Jersey Shore to Delaware was the same day I said good-bye to my parents and to my childhood home. Life will never be the same without this old house but it’s time for the next chapter and a new adventure for all of us.
I love this picture below of the five of us. It’s the first time we’ve all been together in years and we certainly spent much of that time laughing! That’s how we said good-bye to our house on the boulevard.
I know that the world is a troubled place right now and so much has happened in the last few days, but I also believe that even in the midst of it all, it’s important to remember the good times and to be grateful. Memories are a good distraction, if only for a brief moment or two, to bring us back to simpler, even happier times in our life.
Hold onto the memories and embrace the next chapter with open arms.
The world has been through so much in the last few years and now we’ve got even more going on in the world. It all makes my heart hurt and I feel helpless.
I’m one person who tries to change the world for the better, yet Ukraine is a bit of a stretch.
But we can give it our best to make a difference, and as I believe, we can make that difference together.
Let’s join together in sending prayers, love and light to Ukraine and to the world.
Let’s light a white candle each night to remember those that are in harm’s way.
And let’s live each day loving those in our lives, loving the world, and loving ourselves so that we can be our best sense of self to help others.
Danny Rongo, “That Oneness Guy” asked me to kick off the fifth season of his podcast and I was thrilled to do it! We had a great time doing this interview as we talked about my books, my breast cancer and how we both keep a positive outlook on life. If you’re looking for some encouragement, motivation and inspiration, take a listen.
After a good night’s sleep I woke up this morning feeling like my old self!
Funny how those moods sneak up on us without warning, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned is not to get too upset with them or let them stress me out. They come for a reason and sometimes it’s best not to fight them, but to surrender to them until they’ve passed.
And that’s what I did yesterday.
I’m grateful for that day yesterday and as I always told my children: “It won’t be like this forever, just for today.”
And I was right.
Here’s to the down days, the up days, the good days and the bad. Here’s to every single day that we can experience life and all that comes with it. Here’s to being grateful for all of it.
As I stepped out of my back door to go to work I had to stop and take a deep breath! The smell of the salt air was so strong and smelled so wonderful that I took a drive down to the beach. The skies were stormy and the seas were rough but still an absolutely beautiful sight to see.
I’m grateful for feeling better this morning and I’m grateful for this magical place that brings me so much joy: the beach.
Thank you for all your support during my “down day.” I appreciate it and your comments helped me through.
