All my life I used to say that I would live in New York City for a year. It’s actually something I daydream about to this day. The hustle and bustle of the city, crowds of people marching their way to work, the museums, shopping, Central Park, looking for Harvey Specter… all things I look forward to.
Until I came to the very abrupt realization that it’s probably never going to happen.
Hello, Hadeel. You have two kids, Superdad, a dog, and a house to take care of. They aren’t going anywhere. You can’t exactly put them on hold while you go find yourself. This is a lifetime commitment.
So this is a message to all the single ladies out there.
GO!
Now is the time. Take your semester abroad. Go find a crazy internship in Brussels. Go to Safaga or Siwa or whatever is in with you indie-hipster kids these days.
Just go make your dreams come true. And if they don’t work out, that’s okay. You have the rest of your adult life to fix them or try something new. You have the rest of your life ahead of you to be an adult.
I do not in any way regret any of my decisions. Quite the contrary, I count my blessings all the time. I love my kids, I love my husband… even when I hate him… This is everything I could’ve ever hoped for, but I still have this very faint nagging in the back of my mind to the tune of New York. But I guess the only way to think of it is how lucky I am that since we had kids at an early age, once they’re in college or old enough at least to hold their own, Superdad and I will (fingers crossed) have the health and money be able to travel the world in luxury rather than backpacking like a teenager.
Here’s hoping.