I sat at the manicure table after a long day. I just needed to sit for a minute, to take a break for a bit. The never-ending day was finally coming to a close. I opened my phone to tell my husband I would be home soon only to realize I had twelve messages to respond to yet. I laid my head on my hands as exhaustion overwhelmed me. "I just want to go home," I cried.
The salon had been open for a few months. My dream was now a living reality. Business was booming, new clients were calling, everyone was loving the atmosphere I created.
But life sure didn't feel like a dream. "Is this the best it gets?" "I worked so hard for this?" "What did I get myself into?"
I was literally living the dream I had worked years to create. The hours of saving and sacrificing had hit me like a fire hose and I was drowning in the high-pressured water. I had everything I thought I wanted, and all I felt was empty and exhausted. I limped through Thanksgiving and Christmas, because the salon was demanding all of my time. There were just not enough hours to cook or connect with my kids, or have a meaningful conversation with my husband, let alone do anything to take care of myself. Add on nightly running to kids activities and bi-weekly doctor's appointments for my two-year-old who was in a full-leg cast from breaking her leg two weeks after opening.
Life was crazy. I was completely depleted.
Here we are six years later, and life is still crazy. But now our crazy has a calmness and is more intentional. I have learned a few lessons along the way. Ways that are better, that are fulfilling and deeply connected.
Do the demands of everyday life leave you feeling depleted? Do you find yourself thinking "there has got to be more to life than this?" Join me over the next few weeks as I explore the topic "when life feels less than."