The Sisters of Summer #1
Hellogigglers… I’m BAAAAAACCCCCKKKKK!
It’s been a long, drawn out hot minute and let me first say: I’ve missed you. But most importantly: you’ve missed me. No, wait, that’s not right. Hey? Let’s not get bogged down by the details, the point is I’m here and I’m a new woman.
That’s right: a new, fresh faced (albeit a little more freckled), soul-searching woman with a mission. See, when you lose someone important in your life (death, heartbreak, a friendship break up or some combination of all three), you’re forced to reevaluate your life. Or I chose to do that because the other option – going down the Google rabbit hole of “HOW WILL I EVER SURVIVE” – became an option that had no end in sight and made me feel lousy for longer than I could stand. And do you know what I realized? I love feeling good. Not only that, I want to feel great about my life, about who I am and about the choices that I’ve made. “Rise up,” I said to myself. Rise up, girl!
A few months ago, a dear friend sent out an email with the subject being: Single Sisters Of Summer. And though I wasn’t single at the time, I was delighted to receive the email because in it, it entailed a long list of adventures that she wanted to embark on for the summer alongside her friendly sisters. And here’s the thing: I leaned into the concept of it because whether we were single or not, men or women, the basic idea of the email was, “Hey guys, you’re my friends, I’m going through a tough time right now and I love your friendship. So let’s do cool stuff together.” And guess what? I DIG COOL STUFF and I LOVE MY FRIENDS. But more importantly, I love that she made herself vulnerable, reached out for support and in turn received it.
This concept was new to me, it had never occurred to me to do something so brave because I fancy myself an independent lady who needs no one and can take care of myself. But that’s simply untrue, my pets. I need so many people! I need all the people! I need everyone! Wait… no, but I do need a select few and asking for support nurtures not only our hearts but helps take our relationships to new levels. And do you know what’s amazing? I realized by simply asking for help, it’s incredible the people that show up. This was a big day when all these realizations made themselves known. If I were a baking man, I would have made the most elaborate layered cake with butter cream icing to celebrate.
Instead, I’m writing a new column on HelloGiggles that I’m excited about it. It’s aptly called: THE SISTERS OF SUMMER and it’s inspired by my sweet friend’s email. It’s about finding the silver lining, it’s about navigating relationships, it’s about how to find ways to better your life by simple acts of kindness and ultimately… it’s about me learning how to do these things with you… My sisters… My Queens… My Gigglers.
It’s easy to get down on yourself. Even easier to feel deluded by the idea that you’re doing so much and everyone around you is doing very little. But the truth is; life is what you make it. You can roll out of bed on the wrong side or jump out on the right side (just TRY jumping out of bed for once!). You can choose to react to situations with love or with disdain. You can pick yourself up when things are beating you down and you can decide, for yourself, how you are going to make things better. You are the driver of this very sexy new bicycle (I bought a bike and I’ve woken up smiling for the last six days straight thinking about it. It’s like a new pet dog except I take it out when I want to). So hop on that two-wheeler of life, and ladies? Let’s have a summer!
With love, with gratitude and with so much to learn,
Ingrid
