This post is also available in: Español (Spanish)
This week I celebrate two important events: my 38th birthday and my 10th anniversary of living in this beautiful country. It’s funny how sometimes it feels like I got here yesterday, but as soon as I do a quick review, it feels like I’ve been here even longer than 10 years. I left my home country at the age of 28. Some people think I was still super young at the time, but other people view it as a late decision.
If you ask me, I would say that my fear would have been the same whether I was 16, 18, 20, 28, or 40. Why? Because I don’t feel comfortable with change at first. It takes me some time to process the idea of changing, even though I usually still go through with it. I have to make an enormous effort to be able to breathe naturally at first when I’m in the midst of a big change. I blame the controlling side of my personality. Changes come with a level of uncertainty that scares the crap out of me. However, I am extremely grateful for every single change I have gone through in my life. Those changes have made me who I am today, and I totally love this version of myself.
For various reasons, I decided to get out of my comfort zone 10 years ago. I was doing great, professionally. I was enjoying my family and friends a lot. I had many opportunities to keep “growing” inside my comfort zone. But deep inside, I felt like something was missing. So one day, I decided to leave my comfort zone and start an adventure from ground zero in a totally different culture. I landed in the USA on August 2nd, 2010. Even though my mom was already here, I was really scared!
I was already a dentist in my home country by that time. So, at first it was hard to tamp my ego down to the point where I could admit that I needed to go back to school just to learn the language. But I knew that was the only way to move up. So, I swallowed my young pride and enrolled in college to learn English. I was a full-time student and worked full time as well, so I was able to pay for college on my own. Like all beginnings, this one wasn’t easy, but I am deeply grateful that I took the risk.
I need to give you a little perspective about how my life looked 10 years ago, so you can have a better understanding of what I say next.
When I was 28 years old, I did not believe in marriage. Coming from a divorced family, I thought that the institution of marriage would eventually fail for me. My love experiences up to that time had not been the best. It’s not that I had too many partners by the age of 28, but the few I had all cheated on me. Actually, I have not had a cheating-free relationship in my life. Oh well, that will be a subject for a future post. But the truth is, 10 years ago, I was simply scared of love, big time. So when I met my ex-husband right after I got here, the idea of marriage was not in my plans … at all! I wasn’t even looking for a relationship, to be completely honest. I was focused on building my new life in a new country.
Because of that, our relationship was not an easy one from the beginning; we went through many different, uncomfortable challenges. But for some reason (God’s plans, perhaps) we never fell apart even in the toughest times. I always describe the first years of our relationship as a roller coaster. We had lots of ups and downs, but the friendship we built through all the craziness was unbelievably strong. Because of the strong way we grew as a couple, when he asked me to marry him my mind was already changed. I said yes because I had elevated my beliefs. I said yes because I trusted God’s plan more than my fears. I said yes because I opened my heart and mind up to believe in love. I certainly didn’t get married thinking I would divorce six years later. I got married with a peaceful heart and was open to enjoy it as it was.
Even though my marriage ended, I have not changed my mind back to where it was 10 years ago. My marriage was filled with so much love, growth, and learning that I truly believe sharing our lives with someone through the marriage journey is one of the best experiences we can have in life. I am convinced God did crossed our paths through marriage so that we can be the business partners we are today. We needed to know each other in a deeper way in order to have the perfect balance we maintain today to grow our business.
I am so grateful I decided to leave my comfort zone 10 years ago. My mind has changed in so many ways for the better that sometimes I feel like I was reborn after leaving my fears behind in 2010. I have evolved into a more peaceful, aware, beautiful soul. I know I have a long way to go as I keep growing in all aspects of my life, but I have an unbreakable faith in God’s plans for me. I know that every experience we go through is perfectly designed to move us up to the next level.
From my humble experience, I can assure you that leaving our comfort zones and forcing ourselves to change when we feel like something is missing is the best way to evolve, and evolving helps us to fill those empty spaces in our hearts. So don’t be afraid my friends! Leave the comfort zone you’re currently trapped in and let your soul EVOLVE!
Love,
Irene
