Beginning a New Chapter

Having Faith in Love and Embracing the Future

The latter months of 2018 monumental for me…

I sold the home in California my late husband and I shared for many years, sorted through a lifetime accumulation of stuff, eliminated everything that no longer served, packed up all the rest and moved closer to my amazing daughter, son-in-law and grandsons.

I also needed to find a new home for my 86-year-old mom. She had been living with me for nearly three years but moving to a new state scared her — she begged me not to make her go. The only option was a convalescent home.

In the middle of all that chaos, another birthday came and went.

Leaving my home was bittersweet, nerve-racking, demanding and deeply thought provoking all at the same time. And placing my mom in the hands of strangers was fraught with worry and discomfort.

I’m a California native and except for a 5-year stint in Tucson, Arizona, the golden state had always been home.

So, you might be wondering why in the world I decided to make such a drastic change.

It was simple, really. I wanted to close a painful chapter and open a new one… and I wanted to feel good again.

Through 16 months of grieving the death of my deeply-loved husband, I chose to do the inner work needed to heal…

• to accept my new reality…
• to recover…
• to realign…
• to figure out what was meaningful to me…
• and to feel good about myself and my life again.

I wasn’t looking for perfection. All I wanted was to feel good.

Reaching out for help was a little intimidating at first. As a consultant and coach myself, I was used to being the one who was strong, the rock for others. Now I had to be completely open and honest about my grief, allow my tears to flow freely and be willing to accept the guidance of others.

I had a lot of help… from family, friends, coaches and healers.

Without their guidance, understanding, patience and love, I might not have come through the darkness. But I asked for their help and I couldn’t be more appreciative and grateful for the comfort and support they provided me in my darkest days.

My desire to heal and to feel good again was more powerful than my fear of appearing weak or vulnerable.

I don’t regret one moment of the time and energy it took to move into this new chapter. I feel good.

Oh, and as for my mom, she tells me she’s never been happier. We found her a lovely place in the town where she grew up and her two sisters, who live very close by, come to visit her nearly every day.

Life is good.

In my work as a life transition coach, I see all the self-limiting beliefs that come up for clients that stop them from being all that they want to be, and from feeling good.