15 Years Later

Yesterday was the 15 year anniversary of my job. 15 years.  That's a long time! 

It got me to thinking about what has happened over the last 15 years.

I got this job.  This job allowed me to have vacation and sick time, the ability to take time off if my girls were sick, or had an event at school where I could go be with them.  A 401k, etc......

A friend once told me years ago, to not look back at yesterday or the past week, or even the past month, for when I felt like I was struggling.  Look back even further and it will allow me to see the progress I have made.

So looking 15 years later from where I was to where I am now, and I am grateful.  Grateful for my job.  Grateful that almost 14 years ago I had a landlady who chose me to be her tenant so that me and my girls could have a place to live.

Grateful that 9 years ago, my landlady sold this place to me.  Grateful that I had friends that supported me in helping me to find a loan and friends that encouraged me to buy it.

15 years ago I had a small side crochet business where I made funny hats for a little extra money, that lasted a couple of years.

Grateful that 15 years ago, with the encouragement of a dear friend, to start a photography business where I specialized in high school senior portraits.  That photography business lasted 12 years, and brought in extra money so that me and my daughters could go do things.  We even had passed to Disneyland for a couple of years.

Grateful that even through all the trials and tribulations with previous partners, I'm at a place where I have a really great guy, and we are best friends and each other's "person".

Have there been rough patches throughout the years?  Oh yes, definitely.  Sometimes I get inside my own head and worry about the "what ifs" and it really affects me.  But then I have these days when I look back and realize how far I HAVE come.

15 years later and my girls have both graduated college, and have moved out and are independent.  So incredibly proud of them.

Sometimes it definitely gets lonely being an "empty nester" for sure, but it also pushes me to keep moving forward towards other things. 

This is just a reminder, for me, and a thank you to that friend for telling me that one time to look back at my life and see how far I have come.