My happily ever after…

Patricia Taylor Vancouver Monthly Adventure

I had it all.

The education, the six-figured income, the perfect guy, all the toys I could possibly want – and living ‘the dream’ in one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

I played by the rules and jumped through the hoops like any good little girl should.

But then it happened.

One day, I woke up on the other side of the bed and realized that I was living someone else’s dream.

It wasn’t the life I signed up for, so I did the unthinkable: I gave myself a permission slip to walk away from my life as I knew it.

I decided to live my life on my terms – much to the shock of many. After all, people don’t do things like this…it’s not…normal.

But what’s not normal to me is how many people live their lives based on the expectations of others, instead of for themselves.

I simply had better things to do.

Like living my happily-ever-after.

And why not?

I rediscovered the little adventure girl in me, the one who pulled her wagon filled with treasures and blankies and books. The girl who used to dream big and wish upon every falling star she saw. She always saw the magic in things, including the monsters under the bed and in the closet. Every single day was an adventure filled with endless possibility.

And it was time to become her once again.

I started putting myself into situations that made me feel uncomfortable by forcing encouraging myself into ‘direct experience’. And with each experience, I’m getting a taste of different worlds – and I really like that.

One adventure, once a month, for the rest of my life.

Something I’ve never done before.

But not all adventures are fun, I’ve noticed. In fact, a lot of them freak me out in so many unexpected ways.

And they change me, these experiences.

Every. Single. Time.

And really, that’s what it all comes down to, isn’t it?  Change my mind, change my life, change the world?

By allowing myself to become more open to things in the world that are different, I grow more, am more.

I’ve become the change that is so badly needed in my life.

This IS my happily ever after.

What’s yours?