Turning the Page: Embrace New Beginnings with Confidence

The Mess: The book series I’m hooked on just ended and now I have to embrace new beginnings. Anyone else ever have a book hangover? It literally makes me so sad when a whole world I’ve been living in comes to an end. I struggle to embrace new beginnings, especially in books..

The Heartbreak of a Book Hangover

Sometimes I desperately want to cling to the series book world, so much so that I research books with similar themes. I even go so far as to find the author of my current series on Good Reads and see what authors and books they like, with the mission of finding something similar. 

Searching for the Next Best Thing

This usually leads me into another series of books. Some might say I have an unhealthy obsession with books. When my husband and I moved into our new house together he laughed at opening yet another box of books and told me I have a problem.  Is it any wonder that I spent a decade of my life being an English teacher? 

A New Chapter in My Reading Journey

A new series with a similar theme is great at first. I’m comforted by the familiarity of the stereotypical characters and cozy setting. I devour book one on day one and quickly start book two the next. Sometimes I even make it to the third, but then I start to lose steam. The trope becomes too  predictable and I’m met with the realization that I know how the rest of the books are going to turn out. I’m burnt out on the drama coming to a peak three quarters of the way through the book and the inevitable  happily ever after. Did I mention that I’m a sucker for series romance books? Zero judgment if you love them too, they’re a great source of entertainment and sometimes the characters even teach you something about your own life. 

When Comfort Becomes a Trap

My mess with romantic series isn’t the judgment I get for reading them (I know there are people out there judging me…hehehe). My mess is getting too comfortable in something, so comfortable that it no longer serves me. The problem with getting too comfortable is that when I inevitably burn out on the romance series I stop reading all together. I grow listless towards reading and suddenly it’s been a month since I turned on my kindle or cracked the spine of a book. This may not be a mess to you, but reading is a value I want my family to hold in high esteem. For that value to be true, I have to model it for my girls. 

Reading is something I thoroughly enjoy, so it’s a problem when I no longer want to do it.

Literally pick any famous quote about reading, and you get what I mean.

Breaking the Burnout Cycle: Venturing out with New Beginnings

After several times of finding myself in this predicament, I tried to do something about it. I pushed myself to try something new. My solution at the time was to read books outside of the romance genre that I loved so much.  I looked to Reese Witherspoon for guidance. I’ve always loved her as an actress, so when I saw her create Hello Sunshine, I decided to embrace new beginnings.  I loved that every book she picked was purposeful and driven by a woman. 

Finding New Joy in Different Pages

At the time I had a 3 year old and a 1 year old, so I knew if I wanted to engage in these books, I would have to find a new way. The only quiet, uninterrupted time I had was in my 40 minute commute to work, so I started listening to books on audible. Not only was I invigorated by the new books I was listening to, but I also found a new way that I love to read. 

Now don’t get me wrong, I still love to read a good romance novel, but embracing new genres and a new reading style has brought me more joy and contentment than I ever had with reading before. Now that my girls are older, I’ve stepped out and even joined a book club, which is actually a really big deal considering my introverted nature. This book club has a penchant for psychological thrillers and I actually look forward to reading each new selection. 

Life Lessons: Letting Go and Moving Forward with New Beginnings

It has taken me years to get comfortable with embracing new beginnings, both in books and in life. I’ve learned though that endings create a path for new beginnings. 

Sometimes closing an old chapter means we get to write a new chapter of our own. So, I challenge you this month to lean in and  embrace new beginnings. Ultimately you get to decide what that looks like, there is no perfect way to do it. 

• When I left behind teaching, I didn’t burn any bridges.  I simply stepped away and gave myself the freedom to let go of something I had spent so long building. It was sad to leave, but I take comfort in still keeping in contact with the amazing colleagues who turned into some of my greatest friends. 
• Perhaps you are embarking on a new chapter as you say goodbye to high school and hello to college. It’s okay to facetime your college bestie everyday, but it’s also okay to branch out and make new friends. 
• Maybe you’ve reached an age in your life where it is time to step away from a certain friend group that no longer serves you. This doesn’t mean that you have to confront each of those friends with why you are stepping away. In fact you can still be friendly with them, but maybe you change the level of access you give them to your life (check out my post on building better boundaries).
• Sometimes closing a chapter in your life involves pain and  you have to give yourself time to grieve it. A season of grief though,  doesn’t mean that we have to hold off on writing our new chapter with intention and purpose. 

Turning the Page: Writing Your Own Story

Starting something new can bring on anxiety (new blog post on this coming soon). Even knowing what you want to write in your next chapter can bring on swirling feelings of doubt (more to come).

It is daunting to stare at the first blank page of your next chapter, but remember that every chapter and every book are all created the same way. One word at a time, so give yourself grace to do the same.

Embrace new beginnings: 

Join the new community you have found yourself in, college girl. 

Speak up in your new job, boss babe. 

Go out to dinner with your new friends, girl, and feel zero guilt about it. 

Give yourself the time to cry over that chapter that you just closed, if you need it. When you’ve wiped the last tear, take a deep breath, and decide what word you want to start with today. Just one. 

Joy. 

Happiness.

Gratitude.

Balance.

Clam. 

Resilience. 

Whatever word you pick, just remember that you are the one who gets to pick it. You get to write your own story, as many times as it takes to get it right. 

So, wonderful woman, what word will start your new chapter?