After 20+ years in the Investment Management world, I retired in 2008 and excitedly dove into the retired lifestyle at age 48.  I traveled to many amazing places, played a lot of golf and lived a very active social retirement life.  But something was missing.  I felt lost and unhappy.  I needed something to make my life more calm, meaningful and joyful.  So I embarked on a meditation practice in 2014.  This led me on a broad emotional healing journey. And now I reside in a much happier, fulfilling and meaningful place, with Caylee the Zen Puppy always by my side.

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A Zen life for me can be summed up in one word - peacefulness.  I have come to realize that over my life I have always been striving.  Striving to be who others expected me to be.  Striving to accomplish the things I was 'supposed' to accomplish.  Striving to attain the next big stepping-stone in life.  Striving to finish one project after another and check off my to-do list.  Striving to make and keep others in my life happy.  Striving to be perfect.  And at some point, I finally realized that my own self had been left out of the equation.  I needed to find ME, and then strive to live life for me first.  Now this was (and still is) tricky to do.  Guilt raised its ugly head often, and kept me in the same old thought patterns and beliefs that I so desperately needed to get out of. 

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But overtime, the more I kept meditating and letting little bits of the true me bubble up, I realized that peacefulness was starting to settle in.  I was able to switch some of those old thoughts around and turn them into new ways of thinking and living. Of communicating.  Of handling situations differently.  Of making better choices.  Of becoming a happier me.

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By no means am I putting myself out here as an expert on anything!  Not Zen Buddhism, not self-help, not meditation or as any sort of healing practitioner.  I am not licensed to teach anything!  I'm no Deepak, Oprah, Louise Hay or Brene Brown.  I'm just an ordinary beautiful human trying to find my own way.  This is just a new gateway to keep my journey progressing.  I know where my heart stands and I know the work it takes to put one foot in front of the other along the path of well-being.  I will keep journeying along this path for as long as I can. With my best friend and loyal companion Caylee the Zen Puppy by my side 💕.

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If you are struggling to find inner peace and happiness in your own life, then maybe you can dig up some nuggets in my exploration here to adapt for your own journey.  I hope so.  Enjoy the ride!