It kind of snuck up on me – being an empty nester. In August my daughter moved to Tallahassee to attend FSU (Go Noles!) but the nest still wasn’t empty. My son lives with me and I get the pleasure of his 6 year old on weekends too, but Zack works in the ER at the hospital and is gone from 6 pm to 8 am, then sleeps and repeats the next day. Over the past several weeks I’ve found myself home alone most of the time and suddenly realized that there’s no one here I have to take care of, no one that I’m responsible for on a daily basis and yes … I’m an empty nester.
As I reflect back on some of my goals as a parent, one was to give my children a home town, where they’d grow up, develop friends over time and go to the same schools. I’ve been living in the same town for 20 years now, living in my current house for 16 years – the longest I’ve ever lived anywhere in my entire life. I realized this week that I did in fact accomplish this goal, raising 2 amazing children who have grown to be awesome human beings and now it’s time to set some new personal goals. The possibilities are infinite and I am now exploring where I want to live, what type of home I want…let the dreaming begin! Dream one — I’m moving! I don’t know where yet and I am keeping my eyes and heart open to what shows up as I create this next chapter of my life.
For the past 27 years my primary focus was on caring for and raising my children. It’s so strange to not have the daily responsibility for them. So many little things have changed — less laundry, less cooking and shopping and cleaning and all those little changes open up the space for big creations! I’m excited and inspired to create this next chapter of my life. I called my daughter today to see how she feels about moving from the family home and she said “It’s good Mom. You’ve done your job with us, now its time for you!” Am I blessed or what?
Over the next couple of months I’ve got several speaking gigs planned around the country (and a Bruce Springsteen concert in Anaheim) and I eagerly await the opportunities and miracles that I know will unfold as I create new dreams, meet wonderful people and take each step with gratitude. I look forward to meeting you and learning about your journey as well. I believe that every person is filled with unique gifts and talents and it’s my purpose to discover those gifts in others and help them share those gifts with the world. Join me this week for The Present Show (airing Monday evenings at 7:30 pm est) and Wow Wednesdays (tele-class at 9 am) which are just a couple of the ways that I delight in serving and shining the light on others!
