Thinking Travel

My husband, Aaron, and I reached three major milestones this year, each occurring a few months apart:

• Finding full-time post-grad school employment
• Buying a house
• Adopting a cat

For us, the recurring theme of 2007 was Putting Down Roots.

For me, this was very much outside my comfort zone.

I’d always predicted that working a 9-5, owning a house, and being responsible for a life other than my own would severely cramp my style. I imagined a restricted, narrow, inflexible life. I much preferred a lifestyle that, while often financially unpredictable, allowed for extended travel and even living abroad. For me, flexibility equalled happiness.

Then October came to North Carolina.

Aaron’s brother’s cat, October, stayed with us from May thru September while his brother was in India. October hacked up hairballs. She shed all over everything. And her heart condition required that I restrain her front paws while Aaron pushed a pill down her throat every night, which meant we couldn’t go anywhere overnight for four months.

But none of that mattered.

Not once did I feel deprived or regret having her stay with us, even though we spent the summer home-bound instead of camping. Because when October curled up around my laptop when I worked from home, ran to the back door to greet us when we came home from work, or climbed onto my chest to purr while I watched Heroes, I was happy.

None of the other stuff mattered.

When October went home to Chicago I realized how much having her in our lives so greatly outweighed the negatives. And it dawned on me that it was the same with my 9-5 and owning house.

Initially, I wasn’t sure these commitments would be worth what I thought I was giving up, but it’s turned out to better than I could have ever imagined. For example, through my work I went to Jamaica and visited a local school, something I doubt I would have done on my own. And because we have a house with a guest room, my parents decided to spend Thanksgiving with us, a holiday we haven’t celebrated together since I was in college.

And so, Aaron and I decided to take another leap. On December 22 we adopted 3-year old Otto. Already he’s peed on some important papers and misjudged where the litter box ends, but when he races up the stairs to greet us, already purring, when he hears us get out of bed in the morning, nothing else matters.

For me, 2007 was a great reminder that when I push myself outside of my comfort zone, my life opens up to excitement and deepens with meaning.

What’s your comfort zone? How will you push yourself out of it in 2008?

Hey! Join the conversation: leave a comment!