megram - Index

megram - 55Ottawa - Index

about how change is evitable so get
used to it, it is quite another to bring
about those big changes in a life; the
changes that open up different and
exciting doors. Are you convinced?
Are you ready?
I am, I confess, a creature of habit
and while it appears to many people
that I am adventurous, and I take risks
and love trying new things, there is
still the little girl inside that loves to
try new things as long as she can
come back home to something familiar
and safe (and that doesn’t necessarily
mean a physical home).
For some, planning to make
future changes is the way to go. I
envy them. For example, knowing
that once they decide to retire from
their jobs they will venture out to
try a totally different lifestyle. So
many people are doing that and you
see evidence of it on our roads.
Those magnificent RVs that provide
every comfort you could want
(except the view from your window
is constantly changing). Not a bad
idea at all but I don’t think I’d want
to do it alone.
I, for one, tend to procrastinate
somewhat and then find that the great
universe sets up that opportunity that
I just cannot refuse. In essence, I get
blasted out of my complacency. Hang
on to that life jacket, Lorna, this doesn’t
look like Summerstown any more.
Guess what, it isn’t.
Over the past few years I have
seesawed — endlessly it seems —
whether or not to sell my house. My
decision not to was mostly a result of
not getting an offer. So I settled in to
an inevitable long stay.As I said, sometimes
the universe listens carefully.
Out of the blue, I got an offer and in a
matter of four days the deal was
signed.Yikes! The fickle finger of fate
had propelled me into a new future
whether or not I was ready. But I was
and it is definitely the best thing I
could have done.
Mind you, I am still living in the
same area, albeit not in a house.
Granted, a number of my activities
remain the same but what it has done
is freed me from the responsibilities of
maintaining a fairly large house on my
own and also given me the opportunity
to start setting up a small business
that I had been flirting with for a
while but never got to until now.This
will be my release from the rut that
my life had become.Through it I will
get to meet new people, get to go to
new places and generally view my life
with refreshed eyes. It may not sound
September 2008 • Ottawa 21 • Fifty-Five Plus Magazine
as exciting as travelling the world, but
it is exciting to me. And I am definitely
ready.
As for those ruts that I really like?
Well, I’ve renamed them. They have
now become rituals.Those I will probably
carry with me even if I end up on
a mountain top in South America.They
add to my needed comfort.
Lorna Foreman is a self-described
50+ writer based in Cornwall,
Ontario.