Each month a handful of you Google, “How to start your life over”, which directs you to this post, bringing you to my blog. I’m absolutely fascinated by this. Who are you? And why are you starting your life over?
Were you like me, brokenhearted and pushed into a solo journey without a map? Or, are you sitting alone at your computer right now in the still night while close-by an unsuspecting lover peacefully sleeps?
Either way, I think it says a lot about us. That all of us are looking for a connection, a story of how the ones before us tackled this seemingly gigantic feat. When I started my life over, I found myself at every bookstore and library within a 5 mile radius looking for answers. Crouched on the ground, surrounded by self-help books, irritated browsers were forced to step over me and hopscotch their way through the book littered aisles.
The thing about starting your life over is that you get to (and maybe for the first time) be the architect of your own life. You’ll have the chance to knock down old decrepit buildings that no longer seem big enough to house you. You’ll have the power to create a quiet temple for when you need to be alone. Extravagant fortresses will go up in a flash, housing all of the people you care about the most. You’ll be able to repay them back for when they helped you sift through the charcoal remains of your old life and then later sat around for months holding your hand while you drafted up working drawings for your new one.
No matter how big of a feat it may seem, starting your life over is totally possible. Know that there will be times in the beginning when you will question whether or not you have made the right decision. You will crumbled to the ground in a heap of your new plans – for days, weeks even. But somehow you’ll always get back up.
There will also be times when you’ll be walking alone down the street or perhaps sitting quietly in a coffee shop observing the outside world and everything around you will seem illuminated from within. Anything and everything will seem entirely possible; goosebumps will spread, your pulse will quicken and you’ll be reminded of why you set out to redo your life in the first place.
This second chance, this gift you have given yourself, could quite possibly become the most courageous thing you will ever do – and that is so exciting.
Good luck and safe travels.
S.