There are times in life when you really feel the gravity of being on the cusp between now and the next phase of life. Graduation. First day in a new job. Realizing the person in front of you is THE ONE. Babies. Big decisions. These demarcations signify a break between the old you and the new you, and represent opportunities to have something of a do-over, to be different from how you have been in the past.
My move toward the beach in Lewes feels like that. And I am sooooooo excited. At the same time, I’m hoping I can firmly draw a line in the sand to mark the start of a new me. New ways to connect with family and friends, new habits, new thought patterns, new activities, new recipes, new books, new new stuff and new ways of engaging with the old stuff.
On the other side of that line in the sand is a fresh start. I don’t want to just transplant my life to a new location. I’m envisioning a life that is better at the beach.
When I packed up my things on Christian Street, I gave away or threw away lots and lots of “stuff” (ask Tad, AJ, and Pat, who helped me cart it all away). I wrote about that purge on my business blog (see Living the dream), and here I’ll reiterate my commitment to letting go of both the unneeded possessions of past life AND the unhelpful obsessions with past disappointments.
But the people – the people I want to hold on to. YOU – with whom I have shared meals, and game nights, and chatty phone calls, and arts events, and vacations, and long walks, and hard days, and a lifetime of memories, and much love and laughter.
This blog is meant to chronicle my upcoming adventures, big and small – to share with family and friends what I’m up to and what goes on in my head. I hope you’ll comment here and come visit me (once I’m actually in my new condo)! Help me make it better at the beach!
Notes on cmtl.me. Be sure to check out the “about” section to see my full plans for this writing project. You may also notice I’ve moved all my other personal blog posts to this site as well – my vacation posts, and my memoirs (most of which I wrote when I turned 50). Old posts are in the process of being cleaned up, and there’s still some work to do on the site as a whole. Forgive the mess in the meantime.
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Fresh starts are exciting, particularly something as big as your move – which is not just about moving to a new location, but also the transition to a new phase of life. You’ve probably come across the concept of ‘liminality’ – the quality of ambiguity that occurs in the middle stage of a rite of passage or a transition from one state of being to another. It can be disorienting, but it can also be an incredible period of exploration and discovery. So, enjoy the exploration!
Also keep hold onto the things from your old life (in addition to the people) that worked well for you. I look forward to seeing the shape of your new life.
Thank you, my friend!