We Did A Thing – Again

I take my WOTY (Word Of The Year) very seriously, so we just did a thing. We bought a new house! That means we’ll be moving two times in the last year and a half – whew!

This move will be much easier, as we’re only moving about 15 minutes away from our current home. It’s a newer home in a great neighborhood on a larger lot, it’s a quick four minute walk to the beach and we can see the beach from our front porch.

As a reminder, my 2025 WOTY is “adventure” and what an adventurous year we’ve had. A kitchen remodel, lots of travel near and far, and now a whole new home all happened this year. My husband Tim has declared that he gets a vote in the 2026 WOTY, and he’s proposing something like “boring,” or “calm,” or “relax.” Yeah, we’ll see about that!

We had not planned on buying anything or moving from our current neighborhood. In fact I’m not even sure how it happened. We were looking at another place in the neighborhood to consider as an Airbnb. That didn’t pan out, and our realtor suggested we just take a look at this other place. And then we walked on the beach and the story, as I remember it, goes something like this: It was a foggy day, and out of the fog, an old fisherman with his knee high wellies and his stocking cap, walked right towards me. His hand was outstretched and I opened mine to receive his gift of the most beautiful white agate I’ve seen. He uttered not a word, and then disappeared into the fog. And then we bought a house.

With a move comes lots of changes – a new neighborhood, new people, a new way of moving through life. Just this past weekend, for example, we checked out the little village of Seal Rock, a few minutes south of our new home. I’ve passed it many times, but it always seemed like just a wide spot in the road, so I never stopped. Boy was I wrong. It’s a cute little cluster of gift stores, galleries, restaurants and the most amazing woodcarving artist. And it has a healing arts center, right up my alley. Such a treasure.

I’ve never shied away from change. In fact, you could say that I embrace it. I actually LIKE change. I know I’m somewhat unusual in that respect. Change can be challenging, the unknown is scary, and it’s no wonder that many people like to keep things just as they are. But what if …

What if you learned to welcome change? Invite it in. Serve it tea. Get to know it better. Maybe it wouldn’t be so scary. By that I mean, dig deep within yourself to explore the reasons you might steer clear of change. You might find that it’s really not that scary after all.

There are many benefits to embracing change, but before we get there, understanding the why is important. So, why is change so challenging? There are several reasons and here are a few:

Habits are strong and pervasive.
The average person has far more habits than they realize. Each morning, you wake up and follow the same routine. You take the same path to work. You think the same thoughts as you did the day before. Much of your day and night is a repeat of the last 500. You talk to the same people, eat the same foods, find the same ways to relax. Habits avoid thinking. They’re done automatically. Anything that minimizes thinking seems to be your brain’s preference. The fewer decisions, the better.

Change is hard because it’s uncomfortable.
Familiarity is like a comfort blanket. When life is comfortable and habitual, we know exactly how we are feeling, what to expect, and how to react.

What you’re doing is already working, sort of.
Your brain is preoccupied with your survival. Evolutionarily speaking, our brains are programmed to resist change, because what you’re doing is allowing you to live. Any change could potentially lead to death. You might be unhappy today, but you’re still alive!

And now, why should you consider embracing change? Consider the following:

Without change, it’s impossible to grow
It is through change that we learn something new. If you’re unhappy with your life as it is, change is necessary to get unstuck. Even when something doesn’t work out, you learn a valuable lesson.

Welcoming change make you more resilient
You are able to adapt better to new situations and people and places. Each new change gets easier.

New beginnings and new opportunities await
If you keep doing the same thing over and over, you never know what you are missing. What new beginning is waiting just around the corner. Where each new opportunity will take you.

Adventure comes with change
Each new adventure starts with one change. And I’m here to tell you, I have been loving my year of adventure.

Embracing change enriches my life, this much I know. Of course things don’t always work out as I would like, and not all changes are good, and so I pick myself up, brush myself off, and keep going. And when it does work out, it makes for a magical life. I want that kind of magic.