Hope Springs
Whew. I’m here and I’ve missed you all!
Hope you’re all doing well and enjoying the change in seasons.
Crazy isn’t exactly the word I have for this past month. More like fulfilling, enriching, exciting, challenging. And yes, maybe a little crazy too.
This month, I found myself attending a day meeting in San Francisco, and then a day meeting in New York. All in the same week I flew to Italy for Spring Break with my boys. Those meetings were hectic but so was our vacation! We visited four beautiful cities, lived most of our days on a tour bus. I have a feeling that the people we met, two women in particular, are set to be my lifelong friends.
I worked on the bus, in the hotel and during the day while the boys weren’t looking. I enjoyed the time away, the food, the wine and the priceless memories we made as a family.
The following week, someone called a meeting in NYC on the day I planned to fly to Seattle to attend a very important event. And after much finagling, I took the first flight out from JFK to Seattle that Saturday. It didn’t matter that I would only be there for less than 48 hours – what mattered to me was the fact that I got there in time to see my friends get married.
Pardon the intermission. NYC was great, by the way. Shopped on 5th Avenue in the evenings and blended my chaos with that of this city. Saks is always so full of nice surprises. Zara had the fringed pants I’d been searching for weeks. I went to dinner with the owner of a well known PR company who convinced me to write a book about my career.
Now, back to the weekend. It was then that I witnessed the most heartwarming testament to resilience and perseverance and fate. I witnessed a union between two people who showed me that love can change everything. Despite the whirlwind trip and my endless whining about the cold weather – despite my aversion to wearing combat boots – I will always remember the love and peacefulness that surrounded us that day. We were at peace with the world, and the universe was at peace with us.
And now here I am, apologizing to you for the extended absence.
I’m also apologizing to my friend, Adrian, for taking so long to complete the changes to our screenplay. Thank you for being so patient. You will love the script, I promise.
This job, my new role at work, is truly kicking my butt. There’s so much to learn, so much to accomplish – twenty four hour days are simply not enough. I wished I had more time to fit more things in. I wished I had the magic formula to finding balance in my life. These days, I don’t. I admit that I work on the way to work, on the way from work. I work during dinner as my son tells me about his day. I work while pretending to binge watch something that my husband is excited about on Netflix. I work. I work. I work.
Words don’t come easy these days. When I’m focused on strategy and finances, there’s no room up there (*taps forehead) for flowery words or imaginative stories. This weekend’s book signing in Kentucky reminded me (aside from NO MORE book signings) that I simply don’t have the time to make myself visible on social media. Not many people knew who I was or what I wrote. And yet I remain dedicated. Dedicated to my job, to my family and to my passion for writing. I’m proud of the way I’ve pulled everything together. Of how I manage to keep my family life strong, despite the half-assed mothering and wife-ing I’ve done in the years since this all began.
I don’t think I’d have it any other way. Somehow, I will figure all this out. Give me some time. I know my right brain is hiding…
somewhere….
here it is….no, wait.
Let me go find it. I’ll be right back.