“just do what you always do,” i told sam, my stylist, a few weeks ago. 

he clearly disapproved.  apparently, my content in staying the same was a big ol’ buzz kill for him. 

“alright, we can change it up a little.  maybe go a smidge darker ((i know, sorry to disappoint - you thought it was natural, didn’t you?)) - and you can even take a little more off than usual.”

not as dramatic as he would’ve preferred – but it seemed to pacify.

why my reluctance?  it’s not as if i’m shaving my head or painting pink stripes in my hair …

speaking of which – i had tea with my friend kimberly yesterday. 

when i met kimberly xx years ago, she was a yogini-turned-entrepreneur as her yoga studio/s, tranquil space, organically grew from her living room into one of washington dc’s premier yoga studios.

a few years later, she became the designer of a luxurious yoga/lifestyle clothing line aptly named, tranquili-t. 

((insert the voice of a late night infomercial, “but wait!  that’s not all …”))

because, oh yea - she’s also an author (2 wildly popular books promoting balance and bliss with a whimsical flair) … a do-gooder (expanding opportunities for tween-to-teen girls) … and after her last year of grad school, a licensed social worker.

this sparkle-obsessive gal with an odd affection for potbelly pigs, just refuses to be defined (read: confined).   highlighting a new path in life as freely as the pink ones she paints in her newest pixie do.

(sam would be proud.)

seems reasonable to make wild changes in your twenties, but tragic that after a certain point in life,  the creative license for self discovery is unfairly marginalized as some kind of midlife crisis. 

like we must put a checkmark in the box of destiny.  decision time over.

but kimberly totally disregards these rules of reinvention.  she never ceases to amaze and inspire me … which is probably the reason i stalk follow her with awe into each new endeavor.

for most of us, shifts in our lives are not sought out - but forced upon.   in fact, we have this grace period to reinvent ourselves, like a consolation prize, after the children leave home, or we lose our job, or after a divorce.  life painfully strips us naked then tells us to go find something else to wear.

both sam and kimberly think creative life changes enhance the natural shifts of our lives and don't need to be the result of something tragic..  and no need to ditch who we are – to embrace who we are to become. 

simply another petal of a flower already blooming.

the journey need not be a straight shot via a one-way ticket.  there’s no dotted line on which you signed.  we are allowed the freedom to meander and take in the sights.  and not just in our twenties.

may 2011 unearth new facets of your self. 

may you find delight in the unexplored and winding road of a new year:

take up a new hobby, learn a foreign language, change your hair, dabble in something crafty.

enjoy the subtleties of shifts along with the drama of change,

for each is just another petal in the bloom

and the constant evolution of YOU.

for another dose of new year inspiration, please stalk follow gardening coach and outdoor genius, rebecca cohen - how will you flow in 2011?