Coping with change, whether large or small

I was scrolling through my camera roll the other night when I stumbled upon this photo of our house in Dallas from earlier this year.

Saturday will mark one month in San Francisco. I cannot believe we moved one month ago. It feels like just yesterday that we closed on this home, and now we are all settled in halfway across the country. This photo erupted a mass of feelings in me--nostalgia, longing, homesickness, just to name a few. This is the home in which my husband and I began our lives together, the home we hosted our first Christmas with both of our families, the home we welcomed our sweet Pippa into, the first home we ever bought.

I am definitely used to change. I've experienced my fair share of changes in my short 26 years, but that doesn't make it any easier when change creeps into your life. I've gone through change during my collegiate years by transferring universities, gone through career changes (both within the PR industry and outside the PR industry), started over after relationships, moved from Dallas to Detroit and back to Dallas, and now I've gone through arguably the biggest change of my life by starting over somewhere I know very few people with a brand-new job in a brand-new city.

I feel as though change is always exciting at first. You're all hyped up, ready to take on the new challenge of whatever you're walking into, but then suddently the change overwhelms you and you realize that things are completely different now. I can't hop in my car and drive half a mile to my best friend's house or meet my cousin for lunch in a suburb of Dallas. It's a lot harder to visit my family in Houston now and my dog doesn't have the convenience of going in and out of the doggie door to the backyard whenever she pleases.

All of that said, and as hard as it can be when the first wave of homesickness or longing hits you, it's vital to remember why you embarked on your big change. My husband and I are having the time of our lives in San Francisco. Pippa, our dog, loves all the dogs she is meeting in our apartment complex. I am absolutely loving my job and the team I am a part of. I've met some incredible people. And moving to San Francisco has opened doors for HerStory that I never thought possible.

If anyone has been affected by the change, it's my sweet girl, Pippa. Throughout the whole move she was extremely confused. Where are we? Where's my doggie door? Where's my house? Where are all of my hiding spots? Why does my food keep moving? And as I look at this photo I snapped as we were settling in for bed, I'm realizing that although some things are very different, like our bedframe and the walls surrounding our room, others are still the same: our bedding, our dresser decor, my love of coffee and books, the fact that Pippa still tries to sneak on the bed and I don't have the heart to tell her to get down. During the season of change, it's imperative to take a look at the constants and hold on tight.

If you're battling the homesickness bug or struggling against a life change in general, just try to remember that your move, change, whatever it is has purpose. It all goes back to that old cliche, "it won't always be easy but it will always be worth it." You have to remember that. And even if it doesn't end up being worth it, it's so much worse to live with "what if?" than "well, that didn't work out." Regret takes a toll on your heart, and it can be so difficult to shake regret from the back of your mind.

If you're going through a big change right now, whether it be a location, relationship, career change, or anything related, I'd love to hear from you and how you're coping. I think we oftentimes believe it's essential that we fight our battles alone, but it doesn't have to be that way. If you'd rather keep our conversation private, feel free to email me at contactherstory@gmail.com.

Also, someone please show me this photo when I'm thinking about chopping 10 inches off my hair again. That is the definition of regret, my friends. ;)

This is from our rehearsal dinner, our last night together as an unmarried couple!

I couldn't feel luckier than I do right now as I write this post from my apartment, with my sweet pup sitting next to me, in a city I only dreamed of living in one day. That is what I remind myself when the homesickness settles. This is my life, and how amazing is that?