It is the beginning of a new year, and a new decade. I can honestly say that ten years ago, I could never have imagined all that would happen in the coming years or where I would be today.
I'm sitting here watching the snow fall tonight, and the beauty of it continues to amaze me each day. I love waking up and looking out the window, seeing the world bathed in another fresh layer of white. I love the sight of the giant firs beyond the window with their branches heavily weighed down by icy crystals. I love when the sun peaks through the mass of gray above and for a moment, the entire ground looks like someone tossed a million glittering diamonds across our driveway. I love it all, but I could never have imagined it. I could never have guessed that I would be living in northeast Ohio, a place where the drive to Canada is much, much quicker than the drive to a real beach. And even though I might have envisioned that I would be on my way to becoming a doctor, I could never have conceived of the endurance and motivation required to get me this far. I hoped that I would be married by this time in my life, but the idea that I would have been divorced for five years and remarried for nearly two would have been unbelievable.
I recently got back in touch with a dear friend, one whom was a very important person in my life a decade ago. With the renewal of this friendship has come a rekindled desire to reflect on my life and myself. The conversations have inspired me, sparked my curiosity about the life I've created for myself, and reminded me of the person I was ten years ago. While there are obviously some parts of that girl that needed to change, there are other parts that I am beginning to discover are still lying inside me, dormant though they may be at the moment. I am being reminded of the fire in my spirit, and how it is the simple pleasures and moments in life that make it all worthwhile.
Sometimes it takes us looking back at our past to realize where we are in the present and to truly examine where we want to go in our future. It is a good time for reflection, and a good time to stop just talking and actually start doing. It is a time for greater self-discovery and renewed belief in our own strength and tenacity. So tonight, I sit here on this first day of a new year and new decade, watching the snow fall, and I feel hope. Just like the seeds of the lush summer gardens here, I know that the same spirit I carried within me ten years ago is simply buried beneath the layers of change and newness. I know that if I dig beneath those layers, I will find the threads that link the girl I once was to the woman I now am.