WHAT IF?
I paused in the middle of my inner dialogue this evening where I kind of had this light bulb moment. Aren’t these really the best moments? I’ve had several in my life. Bear with me for a second here.
My first light bulb moment was when the love of my life asked me to marry him. Straight out of college. Neither of us had jobs yet. The logical side might say, y’all were crazy! BUT I knew it was right and I jumped in. My light bulb moment meant getting married, packing up and moving to a city I’d never been to before. I knew it would be okay because we had each other. I knew following my heart was what was right for me.
Another one was when we decided to move to North Carolina and eventually start our family. Again, didn’t have jobs lined up…but we figured it out and found ourselves a little more along the way.
Next huge light bulb moment…the story of the black dress in that window. Many of you already know this story so I won’t bore you with the retelling just now. It sparked a MAJOR change though in my life…it was the first notion that writing, fashion and styling would be a path in my life in the future. THANK GOD I listened to this light bulb moment!
Another big moment was when we decided to pack up and move our family back to Seattle, It might seem like a no brainer since our families were both in Seattle…but it took a lot to leave our life we had created in Charlotte. I’ve never cried as much as the day we left our first home and flew back to start our life once again in the PNW…this time with 2 kids in tow.
What I’ve learned along the way is that the REALLY REALLY HARD times usually lead to something magical. It may not feel like it at the time, but it’s usually true.
This pandemic is no different. What if we take this horrible situation that has turned our world completely upside down…and turn it into something beautiful? Something we didn’t even know we needed? Like I said, every hard time leads to something magical. I truly believe this with all my heart. Heartache, the loss of friends or family, cancer, a pandemic, it can lead to something we never thought possible.
What if through this madness we truly find ourselves? It hasn’t been easy for me, and my friends and family will tell you I’ve fallen many times these past few months and cried a TON, but I think I’m learning a very important lesson. I’m digging in deeper than I ever thought possible to find the joy and gratitude in EVERYTHING. I appreciate my family now more than ever. I appreciate our home, neighborhood, friends, my new job…everything seems more magical and special and that is the silver lining.
Just think…once things go back to normal; our kids go back to school full time (which probably won’t happen for another year) we get to eat in restaurants, we get to hug our friends and neighbors without worrying if we shouldn’t have, how beautiful will those moments be??? All of these things will have gone from ordinary, even mundane things we took for granted to these absolutely life changing moments of gratitude and love.
WHAT IF we completely shift our perspective? It isn’t easy, that’s for darn sure, BUT nothing worthwhile ever is!
That’s my take on life as I zero in on my 39th birthday. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else in my life right now because I wouldn’t feel the gratitude and love that I feel right now. Try to really change your perspective this week and see how it may affect your life…
PS, my friend Mandy made this Vogue mock up for me and it’s just so fun! She is the coolest and pushes me to be better every day. I hope I do that for a few of you too…it would make it ALL worth it! xoxo