Finding Your Passion
I am 40 years old. I should be at a point in my life where I am well established in my career, my family, and my beliefs, right? If you had asked me that question at 20, or even 30, I would have answered with an emphatic "Yes! Absoultely!" But, here I am, 40 years old, and still finding my passion.
In all fairness, I have tried everything - well, not everything, but a lot. I went to college at 18 and that wasn't for me. I joined the military before I turned 19 and the only thing I really loved about that was writing and editing for the newspaper. I was also lucky enough to meet my husband while in Japan, so the military showed me the two loves of my life. Once I was out of the service, I had years of jumping from one thing to another. I was a waitress/bartender, managed several gas stations (all for the same company), finally went back to college and worked at my daughters' school as a substitute/assistant while I was in school, and graduated with a degree in middle school English education, which I truly enjoy. But none of those things were my passion. They didn't lift my soul and I didn't feel complete.
So what did I do? I looked back over all those experiences that made me who I am today and realized one thing: in every capacity of my past life, I found a way to incorporate writing, and reading. But could I really write and read for a living? I didn't know if I could or not (honestly, I still don't know for sure) but I knew I wanted to try. I cautiously approached my husband with the idea and he was, amazingly, on board with me. He said he always felt that is what I was supposed to do. Really? You couldn't have told me years ago? No. He couldn't. Because if he had told me then, I wouldn't have believed him. I had to grow. I had to live. I had to discover it myself. I am very lucky to have a partner who supports me enough to let me find myself.
You are probably wondering, "What is she trying to say?" Let me lay it out for you: It is never too late to find your passion. You have to live and experience life to discover what makes your soul light up. And when you do, take the leap. It won't be easy. You will still have to work hard. But you will love it. You will want to do it. It will complete you.
