Endings are New Beginnings

I was talking to Gabriel today about how I’ve noticed that all of my endings have really been new beginnings. The more I reflect on it, the more I see the spiritual truth in it.

Like most people my age, I’ve experienced many endings in life. Relationships have ended—some with a bang, others with a quiet whimper. One career ended, and I moved on to other things that sparked my interest. The places I’ve lived have changed as well. As a child, those moves happened with dull monotony, until I began to seek stability in my adult years. Still, change found me.

Looking back, I see how spiritual principles have guided these shifts. The Buddha teaches that attachment is the root of suffering—our desire to keep things the same often causes the very pain we’re trying to avoid. In our classes, we encourage people to identify the thoughts they want to change and replace them with something truer. I’ve always advocated for letting go of what no longer serves us and aligning with Spiritual Truth instead. When we loosen our grip on people, places, and things—and allow them to transform—we create space for our lives to move forward with greater ease and grace.

When I apply this to my past, I see just how true it is.

I remember my first love drifting away. I had never seen a healthy relationship and had no idea how to nurture one. The silence between us grew, and eventually, we both let go without ever naming it. At the time, I felt devastated—empty and unloved. But over time, I came to understand that I wasn’t ready for a real relationship. The pain came from my neediness, not the loss itself. Letting go of that story gave me the space to begin learning what love really is. Each relationship that followed taught me something more, leading to a deeper experience of love. Now, I’m approaching 30 years with Gabriel—and I couldn’t have arrived here without everything in between.

I held many jobs during school, but after graduation, I stayed with the same employer for 30 years. My career in the satellite industry ended when I chose to pursue ministry. I knew I was complete in that chapter and felt a pull toward something that would grow me spiritually. I clung tightly to that career though—the money was great, and I had allowed my job to define me. But Spirit guided me through the change. Trusting in Divine Abundance gave me the courage to move forward. Ministry didn’t fit me better as a person—but it was the experience I needed at that time. And it was a good change.

As a child, I changed schools 12 times by fifth grade. Some moves were big—like from Kenai, Alaska, to San Diego, California. Others were just far enough down the street to land me in a new school zone. The frequent moves made it hard to form lasting friendships, so I stopped trying. I became numb to the change. But eventually, I’d had enough. When my mom and stepdad divorced, she wanted me to move to Texas with her during my senior year. I said no. I had a job, I convinced her to rent me an apartment, and at seventeen, I moved out on my own. Less than a year later, I made the move to California—a decision I chose for myself to support the changes in my life I wanted to see. I lived in Southern California for forty-five years. Now, I live in Puebla, Mexico—another intentional change to support the person I’m becoming.

Life is good when change happens. It’s not about the change itself—it’s about what we make the change mean in our lives. I invite you to look at change differently. It might just transform your life.