Category: change

adventure, change

Inspired: Delicious ambiguity defined by Gilda Radner

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

“I wanted a perfect ending. Now I’ve learned, the hard way, that some poems don’t rhyme, and some stories don’t have a clear beginning, middle, and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what’s going to happen next. Delicious Ambiguity.” ~Gilda Radner

I choked up as I looked at the New York City skyline one last time before my move to Florida, and then I felt a tremendous amount of stress drain out through my fingertips. My last day in New York wasn’t perfect; far from it. Now I’m starting a new and uncertain chapter. I know this new chapter will help me learn and grow in ways I can’t yet imagine. And I’m ready for all of it, whatever it is.

adventure, change, creativity, dreams, home, writing

Inspired: Nothing to Lose But Time

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

“Now that she had nothing to lose, she was free.” ~Paulo Coelho

Last week I wrapped up my final pieces of consulting work to make the leap to write full-time. Leading up to that moment, I felt a bit of trepidation. I’ve done well as a consultant for 2+ years and I worried about letting go of a good thing. The letting go was difficult but being in this new space isn’t. I don’t have anything left to lose and that is a very good feeling. It’s freeing and empowering. All I see ahead is open space where I can create. Now, everything is a canvas and I’ve got all the colors I need to paint something that matters. I’m home.

change, New York City, yoga

Inspired: The Bittersweet of Goodbye – My Last Yoga Class with My NYC Seniors

Christa Avampato

From Pinterest“I always think it’s a good thing to move toward the light.” ~ one of my senior yoga students about my move to Florida

I promised myself I wouldn’t cry in front of my seniors at our last chair yoga class yesterday. For the past two years, I’ve smiled, laughed, practiced, and meditated with them. They’re amazing inside and out, and they gave me so much more than I ever gave them.

So I cried, in front of them, on my way through the park toward home, when I opened up the thank you cards and gifts that they bought me, even now while I write this simple post. My friend, Kristy, said it best: we’re so lucky to have these incredible connections and it’s so hard to see them change. I wouldn’t trade my time with my seniors for anything, and I also wish I didn’t have to let them go. It’s all bittersweet and happy-sad, and I’m so grateful for all of it.

adventure, change, Florida, future, nature, photographs

Inspired: Find the courage to face change with photographs

Christa Avampato

When I began to think about relocating, my amazing friend, Sara, suggested I make a Pinterest board of every city that’s interesting to me. She had done that when she decided to move to Austin and it really helped her look forward to the change. I followed her wise advice and it’s working like a charm. Check out the board I made for Florida. As you can see, I’m looking forward to more time in the natural world!

 

action, adventure, change, creativity, home, moving, New York City

Inspired: I’m Moving to Orlando, Florida

Christa Avampato

From PinterestAfter years of debate, I’ve made the decision to move to Orlando, Florida at least through the end of the year. I’ve been visiting my family there for long stretches of time while keeping my home in New York City. Now I’m flipping the paradigm to have my home in Florida with stretches of time spent visiting New York.

Some of the reasons are economic. How much higher can New York City rent climb? The answer is always higher, and I really want to own a home, a near-impossibility for me in New York. I could fork over an insane amount of monthly rent for a less and less appealing apartment, but that seems foolish. Better to buy a beautiful place in Florida and Airbnb the time I want to be in New York.

Some of the reasons are personal. My mom’s getting older. My little nieces are getting older. I want more space in my life for travel and exploration, and that’s a tough conundrum to crack with the cost of New York City living.

Many of the reasons are professional. I’m turning most of my attention to writing. That includes journalism, copywriting, playwright, and writing my first novel this Fall. I’ll likely add some teaching into the mix in some way. I’ve also got a few product ideas up my sleeves that I want to be able to build and test. In a less expensive city, this multi-faceted career is possible without sacrificing quality of life.

And it’s time for adventure. If New York has taught me anything it’s that I can survive and thrive and be okay anywhere I go. So I’m going to scale some mountains that have been calling my name for a long time. It’s time to meet them where they are.

I’ll have much more to say in the coming weeks about my move out of New York and into Florida. If nothing else, it’s going to be great material. It’s all great material.

change, grateful, gratitude, Life

Inspired: Today is the 5-Year Anniversary of the Apartment Building Fire That Changed My Life

Christa Avampato

Today is the 5-year anniversary of my apartment building fire. Tonight is also the awards ceremony for the Thespis Theater Festival in which my play, Sing After Storms, is nominated for best play. A portion of that play is based on my fire experience. The synchronicity is not lost on me.

I used to regard that fire, in which I lost almost all of my belongings and barely got out of the building in time, as the worst day of my life. Now I know it was one of the best because it taught me that no matter what happens, I’ll always be okay. That fire literally burned the fear of living right out of me. In the same way that fire chemically transforms everything it touches forever, it changed me forever, too. It showed me how strong I am, and that knowledge serves me well every day. The recovery from it was painful and difficult, but when I consider how much I love my life now compared to my life then, I know it was worth the struggle to get well.

September 5th now feels like a second birthday to me. In my home, I keep a photograph of my old apartment after the fire. That’s where I began again, completely from scratch, to build a life worth living. It’s a self-portrait in a way, a daily reminder that I am fortunate to be here at all. That we all are. I’m glad I hung in there, even in the darkest, most frightening, lonely hours, because on the other side of that fear I found everything I ever wanted. I found me, and that’s something not even a fire can take away.

change, opportunity, writer, writing

Inspired: What a seed teaches us about risk-taking

Christa Avampato

My friend, Amelia, one of the incredible actors in Sing After Storms, posted this quote last week and I’ve been thinking about it every day since. To grow, we have to leave the security of the shore and delve deep into the unknown. Discovery and growth happen when we encounter new experiences, people, and places, when we take risks, and try something we aren’t quite sure we can accomplish.

I have no idea what my life will look like in a few short week when literally everything changes and I start my full-time writing life. I do know that I need this. I need to give this new, wild, unpredictable adventure my best shot, way out there in the wide open air where I’m free to learn and grow in many different directions. Giving up my current way of life seems like complete madness to some; they’ve told me as much. And that’s okay. I’ve known plenty of destruction, followed swiftly by plenty of growth, and I cherish it all. Where they see only loss, I see pure potential to have exactly the life I want to live. I’ve got a chance, right now, this very brief window of opportunity, and I’m taking it. 

action, adventure, change

Inspired: Don’t wait until you’re ready

Christa Avampato

“Great people do things before they’re ready. They do things before they know they can do it.” ~Amy Poehler

Lately I’ve been feeling the tug of big life changes. I recognize their knock at the door and I’ve resisted answering for a bit because I felt like I wasn’t quite ready. This week the knock has grown louder and shouted, “I’m not going away so you might as well answer.” And I did, and the message was simple: “It doesn’t matter if you’re ready or not. You’re capable, and you’ll make the best of everything that comes your way. And where there isn’t opportunity, you’ll make it. Have a little faith in you.” Then all I felt was a huge sigh of relief. And I smiled: a big, wide, knowing, peaceful smile. There’s a great, big, beautiful, blank canvas out there just waiting for me and no one can paint it except me. Ready or not (and capable!), here I come!

action, change, choices

Inspired: A new direction requires a new routine

Christa Avampato

Just do itI head back to New York City soon to begin a new chapter of my career. A new direction requires a new routine. Here are the steps I’m taking:
– More focus on my personal projects as I transition away from consulting
– Much earlier to bed and much earlier to rise: target wake up time is 5am
– In general, I plan to keep myself in a much more structured routine of working hours with very specific goals and milestones that must be hit each day. And I have to schedule my downtime to make sure I take it for my creativity’s sake. Otherwise, I’m likely to work until I drop without batting an eye!
– More cardio exercise and strength training: hello, running shoes and free weights
– Healthier eating and cooking: whole, organic, and seasonal. I’ll share the photos and recipes out of my kitchen.

Are you starting a new routine? I’d love to hear your plans and support you along the way!

change

Inspired: Delicious ambiguity

Christa Avampato
From Pinterest
From Pinterest

Here’s my game plan for life: I’m always prepared for the new. New people, places, experiences, ideas, points-of-view, opportunities. My life doesn’t go according to plan; it goes according to heart.