January's 'Ah-ha!' Moment

My return to Chicago for the holidays was enjoyable for many reasons, but it also helped return some clarity to this trip I'm on.... after I returned to Vancouver. While getting settled in Van this fall I'd bemoaned the loss of my girlfriends - you know, the ones you can call for drinks after a bad day at work or the ones you can text for a last minute trip to the movies on a Friday night. I didn't have those people here and it was challenging for me. I definitely had people, it just wasn't the same.

After my first week back in Vancouver I had a moment of realization - it's not supposed to be the same. I touted my need for change for over six months, but I had never let that thought sink into the part of my brain that controls relationships. I already have girlfriends to meet for drinks - they just happen to be in a different city. What I need are people for this transitional / self-discovery period in my life... and I had already found the exact people for the job.

We also take bad-ass group photos

The people above are a sampling of my improv class. The night the photo was taken we had spent an evening 'out on the town' that ended with a round of sharing deep personal stories. Despite our varied beginnings, the vast majority of us have arrived in the same place and the same question: "What exactly do I want to be doing with my life?" Given our obvious shared love of the arts, we'd all like it to involve a creative outlet in a major way... it's just that journey of determining how. (Except for the woman next to me in the hoodie - she's an amazingly talented actress and will be on your TV sooner rather than later.)

So in the end, I don't just have friends in Vancouver, I have people to truly share this experience with. People who will support me during this time of change, as I am happy to support them. And I am so excited that we get to take this journey together.