It’s a small globe after all . . .

I need to sit in the wrong seat more often.

A few years ago, I arrived in London after a flight fueled by Greek tragedy and Vampire Weekend. . . . “Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa,” “Oxford Comma” and lots of Walcott since I was traveling to see a Derek Walcott opera based on Seamus Heaney’s adaptation of The Burial at Thebes.

I planned to take a four-day hiatus from the whirlwind attached to my transition from CEO of my boutique marketing/ public relations firm to flying-solo as a consultant. Even though I’d steadily accelerated toward this moment for months so that my primary focus could be writing and other creative projects, I couldn’t imagine what the landscape of my days would be like without the structure I’d existed within for so long – office, team, clients, meetings etc. {Translation: I was terrified.}

I decided to create a “dream mark,” a landmark action en route to pursuing my dream —  something other than  saying good-bye to treasured colleagues and packing up an office —  that could act as a symbol of my transition and help me focus on feeling joyful instead of anxious.

Since I’ve always considered William Shakespeare to be the leader of my muse posse {The Bard of Avon and I share an April 23 birthday}, experiencing a creative collaboration between two Nobel Prize winning writers {Walcott and Seamus Heaney) at The Globe Theater seemed like just the dose of inspiration I needed to keep moving forward.

Even the weather was inspired on performance day, especially for London  – blue skies and 70 degrees in early October.  And then something happened to make it even sunnier – I sat in the wrong seat.

Janet {center}, Clara {right} and me

I spoke to the woman next to me for a brief 15 minutes, and then the rightful seat holder arrived on the scene. I had to hightail it to another section, but not before I  made plans to meet Janet Sawyer from Devon, England, after the show.  During an hour of coffee and conversation, we forged the foundation for a friendship that’s shone brightly ever since.

I’d like to give a shout out to W.S., my birthday brother, for stepping up to the muse plate and steering me in Janet’s direction.

And thank you, Janet. Your ongoing encouragement and sheer enthusiasm reminds me that I’ve always been moving in the direction of my dreams. I’m just taking the scenic route, and there are oh so many reasons to be grateful for that.