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Moving on up, but not necessarily out

After a challenging 2011, the beginning of this year was exciting for me with what felt like a brand new chapter in my life.

After a challenging 2011, the beginning of this year was exciting for me with what felt like a brand new chapter in my life.

For the first time, I rented some office space, painted the heck out of it, and made it my own little escape from the world where I could work inspired, and in peace, without the distractions of working from home.

Four short months later, I was told by my landlord that he had sold his business, which was located under mine, and that the new owner planned on gutting the building, destroying the oasis I had spent hundreds of hours creating.

The news came as a shock and I felt crushed. I hadn’t even finished creating it yet; nor had I hosted the open house I was planning.

All I could think about was the time and money I had invested, and how all of that would be flushed down the toilet.

My negative thinking lasted as long as I allowed it to, and then I switched the channel.

“I’m supposed to be somewhere else,” I told my husband in an effort to convince myself that the eviction was a good thing.

“I could get a bigger place to share with other film makers and photographers now,” I continued. “Maybe something closer to home.”

So that’s exactly what I found and I felt excited again. And then a weird thing happened: the deal fell through with the new owner, so I was asked to stay where I was, and I started second guessing my next move.

Should I stay or should I go? It was easy when I had no choice, but now that I did, I wasn’t sure. I craved a crystal ball to show me the future, so I could make the right decision. Without access to one, I made a decision based on my own gut reaction — something that has both served me well and led me astray.

Onwards and upwards was the direction I decided to go, but as optimistic as I was about starting another new chapter, I dreaded going back to the old place to pack up.

I procrastinated the deed for as long as I could, and then last Saturday afternoon faced the task head on. With the help of my husband, we quickly packed and moved the entire contents of the studio before the weekend was over.

Starting the week in my new place felt like a big weight had been lifted from my shoulders. The self-doubt about my decision to leave was gone, replaced with an ever growing to-do list in my mind of how to set up my new digs and the opportunities that lay ahead.

Moving has never been my idea of a good time and whenever someone tells me they’re in the midst of it or about to do it, I feel for them.

Yet moving, like any big change, can often lead to a fresh new beginning once the initial pain-in-the-neck portion of the transition is over.

Always in love with starting a brand-new chapter, I’m ready to embrace any discomfort as I set up Brighter Note Studios, excited to see where life takes me next.