Finding Your Place…

Ladies, when it comes to finances, you’ve got to secure the bag, but more importantly, you need to find your footing–mindfully and spiritually.

I believe the first time that I balanced my checkbook was the day I fell in love with finances.

In my twenties, thirties and even into my forties, I was reckless with money. But since the pandemic, it’s been totally different. The pandemic has revealed a lot to everyone; to include myself. The first two pandemic-filled years, a move and a recent addition to the family brought a lot my way. A remote job position, caused a nurturing spirit and a change in my attitude towards spending.

I’ve since moved and rented my prior residency. I share my space and I now have a fur baby to take care of. The new spot was initially purchased in consideration for my Mom, who is retired and should consider limiting walking the stairs in her current 3-level townhouse. The condo I bought could easily serve as my retirement home and however and but JIC, it’s here if my Moms needs to downsize and to finally give into gravity by living on one level.

The space is condensed and the layout pet-friendly. I can keep track of Buddah and she can hear me in every room; because of that my buddy has adjusted very well to condo life. With only one level, she seems more independent and it’s easier for her to find me since I have more exposure and fewer places to hide; it’s harder for me to be out of her vision and earshot.

The condo may have been an expensive impromptu “gotta get outta here” purchase, with more impulse than planning, but this time it seems my intuition was spot on. After adjusting to the sound of trains every morning around 6:00 AM and the total seclusion, I love the location. It’s close to where I used to live and I can still have access to the same luxuries as before. But there’s a totally different vibe. Yes, the benefits of old, but without the noise, distractions and irritants that made Buddah on edge, reactionary and uncontrollably spastic. Sure, at the other location the grounds were beautiful, the population inviting and the amenities impeccable, but it just wasn’t the spot. Buddah made lots of friends, but she needed a change–I needed a change. We craved and needed quiet, she (we) needed calm and she needed to learn to take the edges out of her life.

At first, I felt bad for taking Buddah out of her element. She had lots of entertainment and activity, not to mention she had to leave a lot her friends, but she needed to find a new space, establish her peace and learn herself ; she needed it–to breathe to grow, and quiet her spirit. Buddah needed this….she needed it bad!

Buddah is now thriving. She’s a big personality in a small-knit community, she is steadily making friends and she’s totally happy! Yes, Buddah needed this, but funny enough, and now that I think of it, I may have needed it even more than she, more than I realized and more than I knew.