People ask me for directions all the time. They trust I am going to tell them where they are going. Maybe it’s cause I walk a lot which is a rarity in this town. When I lived in the Hollywood Hills, foreign travelers always asked me for directions to the Hollywood Sign. People from all over the world, many with limited English, would slow down when they saw me walking.
Every summer without fail, I would see many people packed into a car, which is so NOT LA where everyone drives alone for the most part.
WIth expectant eyes, they’d roll down the window and their hopeful smiles immediately signaled exactly what they were after. They were looking for a literal sign. The Hollywood Sign.
I would start to tell them, quickly realizing they could not understand me at all. But they held their hopeful smiles. What choice did I have? I’d end up deciding to jump in the crowded car and point the way ahead.
I knew exactly where they could see the looming treasure they no doubt traveled from half a world away to see.
I knew exactly which streets would take us near enough to pose in front of it.
You know what happened next. Stranger Diane lined up a huge family so they didn’t cover up the sign. Proof that they were indeed in Hollywood. On a huge adventure. A photo they would no doubt share with family and friends and treasure forever.
My neighbors refused to help anyone in this predicament. The road was supposed to be off-limits to vacationers. The pesky non-English-speaking people cluttering their tree-lined streets. Oh, bother!
These unfriendly, entitled Homeowners went so far as to get official street signs to keep visitors away. These were Lying Signs! They read, “No access to the Hollywood Sign.” Not exactly a lie. That road didn’t go directly to the sign, but once up the hill it clearly loomed just begging for a photograph.
These folks had traveled halfway across the world for this one photo. Who was I to deny them that?
If I was in Paris and couldn’t find the Arc de Triomphe wouldn’t I hope someone would lead me to it?
In the past few years since being left, I feel less lost myself. I’ve settled into my apartment/home and my daily routine. For many years I was directionless and it took a lot of trying and giving up. It felt like every sign Life sent me said, “Not a through street.” There was also that “deciding” thing. I had to decide I would find my way to a place that felt like home. Life graciously guided me to that place. Much like that sightseer’s sign. I traveled all the way around the block to get next door. But it was worth it.
We all go through major life transitions when relationships end… Through this website, I will share my thoughts as I walk the path of “New-Self” discovery. It doesn’t matter which side of 50 you are on. The real question is, Are you ready to live life? To forge a Path of Your Own Making (For a change!)? Then stop dwelling over the What-Might-Have-Beens and join me. Share your thoughts here, comment on mine, and let’s do this together! And check out my book, “Restarting Your Life When You Are. No Longer A Wife” I wrote it just for you!