Two Boxes, a One-Way Ticket, and the Freedom of a Foot Scrub

This week, I stumbled upon a profound life lesson in the most unexpected of places: the pedicure chair.

You see, there’s this one part of the pedicure I absolutely dread: the foot scrub. It’s like nails on a chalkboard for my soul, sending shivers down my spine and making my stomach churn.

However this time, instead of clenching my jaw and bracing for the worst, I decided to try an experiment:

I consciously relaxed my muscles, took a deep breath, and let the sensations simply flow through me.

And guess what?

The discomfort seemed to melt away faster! It was like surrendering to the waves instead of fighting against the current.

And realizing I’m OK! I survived!

This unexpected revelation was a key life lesson in disguise, perfectly timed for the massive transformation I’m facing.

In just 20 days, I’m hitting the road with a dear friend for a cross-country adventure, leaving behind a life that no longer serves me.

It’s a thrilling, terrifying, 200-foot drop on the roller-coaster of change, and I’m strapped into the front car, white knuckles gripping the safety bar, and this time, with a newfound sense of surrender.

Picture this: me, standing in the shipping store, staring at two 20”x20”x20” boxes that are supposed to hold my entire life. Fifty-six pounds each, $140 a pop to ship them across the country to my new home in Florida.

It’s a daunting task, sifting through years of accumulated belongings, deciding what stays and what goes. I’ve been working on this since we moved to this house in August and let go of 60% of household items, including my content creator studio I had set up in the garage, while every Saturday since then sifting through things and letting them go.

Each item a memory, a story, a piece of the life I’m leaving behind. There’s the vintage dress I wore on my surprise engagement date with my husband (now estranged), piggy cookie jar I inherited from my grandmother, the stack of journals filled with hopes and dreams, anxieties and fears through the years.

And photos! Organized boxes of photos. Those photos represent my life from when I moved out on my own in my early 20s until today.

So a couple years ago when I went through them, I took pictures of the pictures because at least then I would have a digital copy. But I could not bring myself to throw away the physical copies!

It seemed like if I let go of these photos, I’m erasing myself from the family history. Of course that isn’t true, but being the second born before digital cameras were a thing, there are hardly any pictures of me growing up and that’s why I took more when I moved out on my own. And then there’s all those Kodak containers of undeveloped film!

I had reached out to my sister recently who has a basement filled with family archives to see if I could add two more boxes and it wasn’t a welcomed request.

And that’s how my family members are: little empathy.

It’s OK. It’s all gonna be OK and I am doing great!

I have Long told myself that I would never be stressed out over stuff! If it’s causing me stress, let it go. And I will be practicing that mantra this weekend.

Packing these sentimental items away feels like closing a chapter while also opening a new one full of possibilities.

Then there’s the emotional baggage I’m finally releasing. The challenging relationship I’m escaping, with its subtle digs, emotional jabs, and the constant tension that’s been a suffocating blanket over my life for far too long.

Today I realized that he changed our shared business account passwords without telling me, a final act of control in a relationship riddled with them.

Yet exactly with each passing day, with each item I pack away to keep or donate, with each deep breath I take, I feel a sense of liberation growing within me.

This journey is about so much more than just escaping a difficult situation.

It’s about rediscovering myself after having released the ‘cement’, prioritizing my well-being, and finally stepping into the life I was meant to live.

It’s about trading fear and self-doubt for courage and confidence.

It’s about embracing the unknown with open arms and a fearless heart.

It’s about finally allowing myself to be seen, to be heard, to be free.

Ahead lies a Marketers’ Cruise filled with new connections and opportunities (a chance to showcase the new wardrobe I’m so proud of!), a house-sitting adventure in sunny Florida (imagine: waking up to palm trees and ocean breezes!), and a fierce determination to achieve my long-held dreams of financial self sufficiency through building my multiple online streams of income.

I’m shedding the old, embracing the new, and stepping into the brightest, most authentic version of myself… for the very first time.

This is my great escape. My chance to close one chapter and start a new one with optimism, a plan and a determination to create the life of my dreams.

I can’t wait to share every exhilarating twist and turn with you. Buckle up, because this roller-coaster is just getting started!