Zones.

It’s called a comfort zone for a reason: it’s comfortable.

My mom occasionally tells me the following: as a child, she would sit me in a spot and I would obediently stay there. Not fidgeting, not itching to move–glued to where I was placed and never giving cause to worry that I would disappear (unlike my little sister, who often disappeared and returned with fistfuls of food). By and large, when it comes several things in life, I’m still that little girl. When I’m comfortable somewhere or with something, there is very little desire to make changes. Because I’m content where I am. Of course, I don’t have to tell you that this can be both a good and bad thing. On one hand, I’m pleased to remain unmoved by every passing whim or flight of fancy. On the other hand: utter stagnancy.

To be stagnant is something I wouldn’t wish on anyone. Not even the girls who introduced me to the word unibrow. Even worse than being stagnant is the precise moment when you realize it, when you feel it: that you’re not moving, you’re not progressing, you’re stuck. Kind of takes your breath away. Several months ago, that realization consumed me. Underneath the contentment I felt with my life was also a complete lack of movement. I wasn’t going anywhere. That sinking feeling also came with a realization that many of the goals that I had, things I wanted to do, had been placed on life’s back burner. I had shelved many of my goals and desires to accommodate my responsibilities to my family, my employer, so on and so forth. But by doing this, I was also being quite faithful to my comfort zone. There’s the sneaky rub: my routine, my existence, was fine, not unpleasant. So why shift the system? Why disturb the force?

Utter stagnancy.

But I also recognized that in order to turn utter stagnancy on its head, to get moving, to remove from the back burner some of the goals and desires I had, some windows had to open for me. Well, with prayer, time, and keeping my eyes open, I started to feel the light breezes of opened windows all around me.

Change is on the horizon for your Square Peg, my dear readers. My pen is poised to begin a brand new chapter, one that will require putting on several pairs of big lady pantaloons and getting my life/goals moving. I’m being intentionally vague with the specifics until things become firmly planted, but once things are set in stone in the coming months, I will speak in detail. Until then, know that I’m intrigued, I’m terrified, and I’m super excited. It’s high time to relegate that comfort zone to life’s back burner, isn’t it?