My friend, Pam Asberry is all too inspiring and her post on Monday about awesome new things she has tried brought me to shameful tears. You see, this year hasn’t been about trying new things for me; it has been more about shedding the old:
- Cleaning out closets
- Hosting a yard sale
- Taking a break from everything I aspire to be to search for a job
- Letting go of a relationship I thought was forever
And what awesome new thing did I get? A little piece of paper, signed by a judge, that states I am once again…single.
But wait! I don’t want to weigh you down with a bunch of poor, pitiful me sob story stuff. If you’ve read anything I’ve ever written you know that’s not at all what I’m about. Let’s take another look at the bullet points above:
- Yes, I cleaned out my closets. I discovered half of my clothes were either too small or too big so guess what I did. I bought new ones. One of my favorite new outfits I found at Macy’s. Hot, right?
- Okay, so what. I hosted a yard sale. Big deal! I made enough money to re-do my little girl’s room. It’s very pretty and purple now. She no longer resides in a guest room disguised as a kid’s room. She now has her very own space complete with a newly painted night stand and stars and “jewels” on the walls.
- Yeah, yeah. This is where it gets hard. I took a break from everything I aspire to be to look for a job. Listen, it only sounds bad. My passions (writing, cooking, painting) got put on the back burner one more time in my life but in their place I got to take classes on InDesign and Illustrator and learned some cool new tricks of a new awesome trade. I’ve been doing freelance graphic design ever since. So there is still the ginormous void of an actual job but I know its coming. Living in faith, I know, like I know, like I know. So, now is the time for me to reconnect with my passions while I still have some free time and let God take care of the rest.
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| Red's New Room |
- Letting go of that relationship was probably the most devastating, but in the process I connected with old friends and new, especially the girls, like Karen, Zoe, Pam, Megan, Marjorie and a list of others who must forgive me as I only have so much space in one blog post, BUT you know who you are and you know I love each of you so much it hurts. And lest we not forget the boys like Mark, Bryan and Michael who have been like little beacons of hope for me that good, honest men do still exist.
You see, my pretty awesome new things are the things I had been lacking all along. The gumption to get rid of the old and start looking for the new. The knowledge that space is very personal. The ability to learn and grow. And, the courage to admit when something just wasn’t working.
Yes, in 2011, I shed the old but look at all the awesome new things, and people, I discovered in the process.
Life in Penned Perspective by Lindy Chaffin Start
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4 comments:
Your message can be applied to any of us at different times in our lives! I admire you and congratulate you on your approach to life and life's surprises! I am with you all the way!
Thanks Linda. I appreciate your support and friendship over these difficult months. You are a treasure. XO - Lindy
Great post, Lindy! I love how you have turned every negative thing into a positive. That is one of the hardest things to do in life and a lesson I know your daughter will definitely appreciate. You are a great mom. :)
I wish you all the very best.
Tami
Tami, you are all too generous. But, thank you. It is hard to turn negatives into positives, and the good Lord knows she knows that there is a process. But at least I try. She's a good reason to always do my best. Thanks for stopping by. - Lindy
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