A challenge that began with the thought, 'Is this really how I want to spend my life?'

🌱 Living alone, which was a little different from what I expected 🌱

Living alone began with a job transfer away from my family.

Click here to read the story of why I ended up on a solo assignment ⬇️

At first,
I thought, "Since I'm living alone, I should make the most of it."

But my actual daily life was:

Going to work on weekdays, coming home,
cooking, laundry, cleaning...
I only had a little bit of time
for myself before bed.

Since I went back home almost every weekend,
before I knew it, time had flown by in a blur.

The life of living alone, which was supposed to be free,
passed by much faster than I had imagined.



Once I got used to that life,

suddenly,

"Is this really how I want to spend my life?"

That feeling started to well up inside me.

When the only one you have to talk to is the TV (lol),
you really do end up having time to think about various things on your own.


Right around that time,
having turned 50,
I found myself spending more time thinking about my future.

"I have to do something."
"I have to change something."

Even though I didn't have a clear answer,
somewhere inside, I felt a sense of impatience.

🌿 A reunion with a nostalgic qualification 🌿

That was when I remembered

the Grade 2 Organized Storage Advisor qualification I had obtained out of curiosity a long time ago.
When I was cleaning up after a move,

I happened to find the certificate,
"Oh, that's right, I did get this,"

I felt a bit nostalgic.

Back then, every day was busy, and after getting the Grade 2,
I didn't have time to think about going for Grade 1...

Now that I finally have the time,

"Maybe it's okay to take it a step further."

Thinking that,
I decided to challenge myself for the Grade 1.

When I looked into it, I found that to take the Grade 1,
I needed to take a semi-Grade 1 course,

and it was a two-day, in-person lecture format.

For someone like me who had only ever studied through correspondence courses,
it was a choice that required some courage.


What I was even more hesitant about was how to spend my weekends.

For me, who had been going home almost every weekend,
this meant using the time I would have spent with my family.

Honestly, I was very conflicted...

Even though I'm allowed to do as I please on weekdays,
is it okay to prioritize what I want to do even on weekends...

Along with that feeling of guilt,

my mother-in-law is still active and healthy,
and my children are already working adults.

"Maybe it's because it's now that I can do this."

That feeling.

Those two thoughts
were perfectly balanced in my heart.



💡 It was the 'date' that gave me the final push 💡

When I looked at the course schedule,
there was another event that gave me a push.

That day was—my birthday‼️

The day I would turn another year older.

At a time when I was thinking about my future life,
the course was happening exactly then.

"This must mean something."

It might be a bit of an exaggeration, but
I felt like it was fate (lol).


When I told my family,
"I won't be coming home this weekend,"
they were much more supportive

than I had expected.
The hesitation I felt suddenly lightened.
🌸 The first step doesn't have to be big 🌸


And so,

I pressed the application button.
Even though it was just that,

for me,

it was a definite 'first step'.
Back then,

I could have chosen reasons not to do it, but
the action I chose with just a little bit of courage
made me feel like I was seeing

a slightly different view than before.
It doesn't have to be anything special.


It doesn't have to be a big challenge.

Just prioritizing the feeling of 'I want to try this'

a little bit.
That step I took on my birthday


became a small catalyst

for thinking about how to spend my time from now on.

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※ I have been involved in moving for 7 consecutive years. Each time, things increase, decrease, and I get confused again...
　In this note, I write about organized storage and changes in life that I realized through moving.

※ If this article left even a small impression on you, I would be happy if you could support me with a 'Like' or a donation 😊