Out With the Old

Happy New Year! 2018? Really? I can still remember when so many were panicked over entering into 2000, and now it’s 18 years later, and I guess we are still doing okay. I don’t know about you, but I don’t make resolutions for the new year. I try to work on the usual throughout the year—exercise more, eat healthier, take time to do the things I tend to put on the back burner. All the types of activities we forget about, or at the least, procrastinate as much as possible.

Instead of resolutions, I prefer to have a list of projects I would like to accomplish over time, even if it’s not necessarily done right away. One of my major projects for this year (aside from getting another novel published, of course) is downsizing. When my husband and I moved from Idaho to Nevada, we moved into a smaller house. There was no way to fit everything we had in the larger house into the space we live in now. I love having a little less room to take care of, but that meant leaving a lot of boxes in the garage and closets where I could squeeze in a box or two.

As many of you know, I was a medical transcription instructor for 13 years, and after I was laid off from that job, I stored all my instructor materials in my office closet. And there they sat for almost 5 years. Actually they still sat on my desk for a long time, because I couldn’t bring myself to put them away. I wasn’t  ready to say that part of my life was over. I did look for another position for a year, but even after that, they remained a part of my surroundings for quite a while. Then one day I decided it was time to put them away and  create an environment focused on writing only. It felt so good to do that, but every time I opened those closet doors, there stood my instructor life staring me back in the face. I think I left them there for my “what if” phase. What if a school calls, needing an instructor? What if I decide to go back into transcription? I sure could use all those books and practice dictations to brush up on my skills, right? Yeah, not going to happen.

I’m not so sure I would go back even if the opportunity did present itself. Which is exactly why emptying out that closet was going to be my first project for this year. It wasn’t  easy to let it all go. But surprisingly, despite the bit of nostalgia and sadness hitting me, it felt good to finally clean off those shelves. I have said this in prior posts, but had I not lost my job, more than likely I would not have 5 books published to date with more on the way. I’m not even sure I would have pursued writing at all if I was still a working MT.

I have kept some things from my former career. Articles I wrote, newsletters I created, certificates I earned. Those are all safely tucked away in a corner of my closet. I’ll never need them again, but it’s just a small reminder of the wonderful career I did enjoy for 37 years. I still have boxes to go through, not all former career related, but part of the downsizing project for this year.

My out with the old is officially under way. My in with the new will be more writing, hopefully more published books, getting back to some things I put on the side lines for far too long. I’m going to take up cross stitching again, golfing, more hiking, always lots of reading. What about you? Take a look around and see what you might take out of your life, bring back something and make it new again, or go for something completely brand new. I never dreamed I would become a writer. Two references and 3 novels later, my new keeps getting better and better, and with a lot more room in my closet!

Thanks for stopping by and remember to enjoy your day.