If you've been reading along with me, you'll know that the answer to Part 1 of this question involved opening myself up to broader possibilities and taking the leap of quitting my job as a lawyer. As I wrote in that post, my job for the next year was
going to be to design an exciting new life, one that was more in alignment with
my true self and how I really felt inside, now that I would have the luxury of
time to sift through the clutter of our hectic lives and figure mine out!
Okay, So You Quit Your Midwestern Job, But How
Did You End Up On An Island?
I spent
the first week of voluntary unemployment sleeping in, going to lunches and
matinees with my stay-at-home-mom friends, snuggling on the couch with my
darling dog, Angel, and voraciously reading books. Or, as it helped me to think
about it so that I didn’t feel too lazy, I spent my first week implementing the
first component of my new plan – to just BE and decompress for a little while.
My
first real order of business came quickly:
ditch winter and spend time with my family in Florida. While there, I also planned to duck away for a
week-long trip to a tiny island in the Bahamas where my family had been vacationing for 25 years. We had even built a family home on the island,
but I hadn’t visited in several years.
Well, one week on the island turned into a month, turned into several months. Walking into that small community of people who had known me since I was 16 was a true homecoming. I love the small-town values combined with a sophisticated flair from an international mix of people, the indescribable beauty of the sea, the comforting warmth of the sunshine, the overwhelming peace and contentment I feel here, the pace and experiences of island living, and the time to fulfill all my domestic “nesting” leanings.
I was home.
Well, one week on the island turned into a month, turned into several months. Walking into that small community of people who had known me since I was 16 was a true homecoming. I love the small-town values combined with a sophisticated flair from an international mix of people, the indescribable beauty of the sea, the comforting warmth of the sunshine, the overwhelming peace and contentment I feel here, the pace and experiences of island living, and the time to fulfill all my domestic “nesting” leanings.
I was home.
Why go
back to the cold? Why return to the rat
race? I was HAPPY on the island. At peace.
Satisfied. Content. To the core.
Sure, there were still a host of unknowns, but I quietly sensed that it
would all just work itself out. This is
where Faith comes in for me. For once, I
wasn’t trying to plan every detail, and it was evolving better than I could
have even imagined. I trusted that would
be the case with eventual work and other details, too.
So, I sold off everything in the States and declared this small island my permanent home, with my U.S. base conveniently with family in South Florida.
So, I sold off everything in the States and declared this small island my permanent home, with my U.S. base conveniently with family in South Florida.
Massive Moving Sale |
I kept the beloved piano and giant sunflowers photo, but ditched the shovel and winter gear! |
Amazing what you'll part with when the question becomes "Is this worth moving cross-country & paying for storage space?" |
Taking stock and marking off one of my many lists during the sale/move. |
Ahhh, already on my way to a Better Life! |
A
Word About Love
One
other thing – as much as I try to protect the privacy of those close to me
who may be less than enthused about their lives being broadcast in this manner
(like my uber-private beau), my story is incomplete without one other critical
piece. Back on the island, I reconnected
with The Great Love of My Life, a Bahamian man I had dated for 5 years more
than a decade prior. It is such a small
community that I suspected I would cross paths with him when I came for my
visit. But there was so much water under
our respective bridges that I wasn’t sure if we would even still be friends,
much less entertain the possibility of a romantic reunion.
However, some fires are inextinguishable. Our love burns stronger than ever, and coming to this as wiser, more-experienced people gives us a fresh perspective and appreciation for what we have. We are together now, and I expect we will be forever this time around.
However, some fires are inextinguishable. Our love burns stronger than ever, and coming to this as wiser, more-experienced people gives us a fresh perspective and appreciation for what we have. We are together now, and I expect we will be forever this time around.
One of the few pics you'll see here of my beau! |
Thank
you for joining me on this amazing journey!
May you dare to live your life to its fullest, too. It’s not your location that matters; it’s
your state of mind! Be open to Choosing
The Better Life for yourself. I can’t
wait to hear about your journey!
LOL. Yup, that about sums it up! Thanks for your comment, Derra.
ReplyDeleteNudgings are good. Listening to those nudgings are even better. A faith that deepens and a love that is passionate are wonderful things. Here's to a journey that keeps getting better and better - Lois
ReplyDeleteP.S. I really like the love story part of this post - and the photo that goes with it :)
Thanks, Lois. LOL, yeah the "love story" is something people like (me too!), but also what I feel the need to protect, especially with Mr. Private. As for the picture, it's my favorite! Glad you like it, too. As always, thanks for following along.
DeleteBeautiful. The story, you, your love for each other...just beautiful. Made me get all girly and teary at how Romantic your story is. Yes, I know there was stuff before that, but...*Sigh. Love you guys.
ReplyDeleteQuite simply Sarah, thank you! :)
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