My midlife crisis turns 18 months in December!
Hard to believe, how fast they grow up. Seems like only yesterday it was merely a zygote of an urge / gut feeling I could no longer deny. And I’m definitely not done yet. It’s actually not so much a crisis, but rather a segue between Acts I & II. Although the segue itself is starting to feel like Act I.5. Here’s what I’ve figured out so far:
1. It takes more guts to walk away from safety than into the fire.
2. If a total stranger (insert random act of rudeness here), be kind & cut ‘em some slack. For all you know, they just got that call telling them, “Your father has brain cancer”.
3. If the thought of doing something “outside your comfort zone” scares the shit out of you, you need to do it. Twice. Because the first time you’ll probably be too nervous to give it a fair shake.
4. Leave the past in the past. Period.
5. It’s going to get harder before it gets easier. And then it will get harder than ever before it gets easier. And then it will get so hard you can’t ever imagine it getting easier. But it does.
6. Be real good to your friends, cos you’re gonna need ’em.
7. If there are people in your life you have to make excuses for or seem to prefer “the old you”, scrape ’em off. Like shit on the bottom of your shoe, scrape ’em off.
8. This too shall pass. (That’s actually a Kurt Vonnegut Jr. quote, now taking up permanent residence on my arm)
9. If you find yourself looking for an answer, STOP. A) It won’t be what you think it’s gonna be. B) It won’t be where you’re looking. It will be the last thing you thought it would be, and it will find you when you least expect it. And it will be worth the wait.
10. I’m leaving this one blank, as I’m sure I still have more to learn. God, I hope so.