endings and beginnings

On Friday, I finished one chapter in my life: I left my job of five years to be my own boss! For those of you who know me, this is nothing short of momentous. I've always been a careful planner when it comes to big life decisions; I'm like that chess player that keeps her hand on the piece for three minutes while studying the board. And while I did make some Sharon-esque moves—squirrel away an emergency fund (I love you Suze Orman, despite your scary tan!), line up freelance editing gigs, and map out a contingency plan/life goal—venturing into uncharted territory still scares the bejeezus out of me. There are so many unanswered questions (How do I set up my web site? Will the social isolation turn me into Piggy from Lord of the Flies? What if I wind up penniless?), but I'm taking inspiration in a quote my friend and former office mate Alice shared with me: "At the end of your life, you rarely regret the things that you did, but you'll always regret the things that you never did." And already it's ringing true: I'm just two days into Sharon 2.0, but simply knowing that I'm in charge of my own destiny and taking a gamble on myself makes me realize that I won't look back.