It was just another day. A day that was not unlike any other day that she had experienced before. However, when she stepped outside, things just FELT different, like they had on that fateful day all those years ago.
20 years ago, to the day, in fact. She stopped dead in her tracks.
“Could it really have been that long ago?” She wondered.
It felt as if it had only been a week ago since it had happened. The day that everything changed.
That morning, 20 years ago, had started out just as normal and inconsequential as many other mornings before it had. She had gotten up, eaten breakfast, taken her shower, gotten dressed, put on her make up, grabbed her jacket, and headed out to her car to go to work.
Little did she know how the day would unfold.
As she turned onto the Highway that would take her to her destination, she started getting the sense that something was different about the day. There did not seem to be as much traffic as usual and the usual cacophony of sounds did not seem to be accosting her as she listened to the morning news from her iPhone. The sky even seemed brighter, and the air seemed less thick with smog. Something just felt “off.”
“Maybe it was just that she was in a good mood?”
The news did not seem any different; there did not seem to be any difference in the amount of chaos that had been happening in the world- it still felt like things were still going to hell in a hand basket (“where?”, she laughed to herself, “Did THAT phrase come from?”); there were still too many people acting like total idiots, and the price of gas was still WAY too expensive.
“So, What WAS it?”
Her phone buzzed just then. It was her boss calling to let her know that she would not be needed at work that day.
Irritated that he could not have called sooner to let her know, especially since she was now only a few miles away, she took a deep breath, muttered a few very unladylike words under her breath, turned the car around, and started back. Now that she had the day off, she decided that this was the perfect opportunity to start her new project.
She had always felt that she was meant for something greater than what she was currently doing. There was something pulling at her, telling her to do something. However, she had no idea what that “something” was.
She had made a list of things that she had been wanting to try doing, so when she got back to her house, she dug the list out of the archives on her computer, printed them out, and sat down on her bed with her black cat named Merlin, and sorted the list into categories.
The first category was for things that she really felt she had no chance at ever achieving. These included things such as going into space, meeting Elon Musk, singing in a band, or being a world-renowned photographer. She felt that she would be too old by the time they happened to carry out these goals.
The next set of goals were a bit more achievable. This would be her second category, and it included things like becoming a respected artist and writer, selling some of her photography, starting her own business, and buying a van and traveling the country.
The third category was simply things that she could do “today” to get her closer to her Category One goals. This included mundane things like ‘save money,’ or ‘write more,’ or ‘promote more’, in other words- the stuff she had been doing.
When she had completed the lists, she went over her financial accounts, did some math (something that she was proud to say she was good at), and made a decision that was going to change her life. Forever.
Picking up the phone, she dialed the number to her place of employment and proceeded to resign her position. A position which she had had for almost 25 years.
“Since they decided that they didn’t need me, then I’m deciding that I don’t need them!” she thought.
“It is time for a change.”
Now, 20 years later, she had the same feeling. Sure, her life had been more difficult after she had left her job, for a while at least. But she had never felt so free. She had pursued her ‘Category three’ goals, gotten a small social media following that she could count on to help her get the word out about her newest artwork or writings, and was living comfortably with her husband and son. Life was good.
However, she still had that nagging feeling that she was missing something. She wanted more. She wanted to achieve those Category One goals. Or at least get as close to completing them as she could. She knew she would never again be a singer, and at her age, would never be able to get to the moon.
That Elon Musk thing? “Well,” she laughingly thought to herself,” Maybe she COULD do that. “.
But… how to start?
Elmo Said it best… “Just put one foot in front of the other”
(Elmo In Grouchland: Take the First Step!!!)
The first thing that she was going to have to do, she decided, was again -make a list. (She LOVED making lists!) She would need to take those lists of things that she wanted to do and expand on them. Create timelines for getting them done. Make them seem to be imperative. No, no “seem to be” … MAKE THEM IMPORTANT!
She got right down to business. Those annoying subscriptions that kept taking small bits and pieces from her savings? GONE! The money that would have gone to paying for those? She used it to create automatic stock buys and Cryptocurrency investments. She realized that if she wanted to buy that camper van that she had her eyes on, she was going to need to get serious about things.
This meant no more buying from Amazon – besides, with the gas prices skyrocketing, the delivery fees were becoming exorbitant. She was just going to have to - “gasp!” – GO TO THE STORE!
She whittled down her life. She was going to become the most boring person alive… other than being with her husband and son, she was going to have NO social life. But that was ok. If the end result was going to be the goal that she had set for herself, then that was what needed to be done.
Fast forward six months. With the saving of the money that she had been doing, the sales of her artwork, the income from her writing, and her investments rising in value, she had now accumulated over $30,000. Not too shabby, considering that it had ONLY been six months since she had made this commitment.
She still had a way to go before she had the amount of money that she needed in order to be able to do everything that she wanted to do, but she was well on her way.
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About the Creator
Michelle Hoffmann
I am a passionate digital artist looking to leave my mark on the world. The art I create is unique and original, like me! To date, I have created over 3000 pieces of artwork.
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