Starting Something New

I was positively giddy on December 31st.  Maybe it was because some special friends were coming over that evening and we were going to enjoy our traditional seafood feast and game-playing until it was time to toast and kiss at midnight.  Maybe it was because my house was the cleanest it’s been in a while (I really should have company more often). Or perhaps it was the combined joy of saying goodbye to a year that held a few setbacks and sad moments and hello to a year filled with excitement and promise. 

 

But now, less than a week later, I’m starting to second guess myself. Where did this doubt come from? Hadn’t I achieved a huge goal of actually publishing my ebook? Hadn’t I started the new marketing adventure of developing a series of podcasts? Hadn’t I landed a couple new clients who really are testing my SEO chops? All seems so positive, where the heck was this doubt coming from?

Then it dawned on me that there was a whisper inside that nudged me to pursue a completely new feat. But it had to be big. And it had to be about something other than me, my family or my business. But What? Then I remembered a story I read in the Globe and Mail and that gave me an idea.

I nosed through the recycle bin to find the newspaper and found the article about a school in BC that enables their kindergarten class to be held in a retirement home two mornings a week.  There was a poignant story of an elderly woman who worked very hard through physio to be able to use her walker with confidence just so she could get to the common room and read to these youngsters.  The kindergartners were calling the residents ‘grandmas and grandpas’ and instantly connected with the seniors who participated.  Both fragile, vulnerable groups were benefiting from this small, simple activity. My heart swelled. Of all the things in this world, I would love to find a way to make the lives of seniors more enjoyable and perhaps it’s a simple thing. All you really need is motivation, right?

Great ideas demand action. What do I do now?

(Note: this picture is of my beautiful friend Joan who has inspired me for several years at our 'tea on Tuesdays' visits. I lost Joan before Christmas and will always remember the funny stories she shared and the remarkable inspiration she was to myself and others. I will be blessed indeed if I turn out to be half the woman she was.)