In this vlog entry, the creator reflects on a brief trip to Lille with her husband, using the experience as a springboard to discuss her mid‑life reinvention. She recounts how, in her early 60s, she and her husband decided to move to France and start a new business, emphasizing that it’s never too late to make big life changes. She urges viewers to stop waiting and start their postponed projects immediately—whether rewriting a novel, shifting a business, or passing a French exam for residency. The video also includes a shout‑out to the excellent organization of the Olympic events in France, notes the distinct northern French accent she encountered (referencing the film Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis), and stresses the importance of discipline and honest self‑assessment. Throughout, she invites the audience to comment on what they’ve been waiting to do and to commit to acting now.
Bonjour!
It is day 23 of 30 Days of Following My Dreams. It is the 30th of July, 2024. Le 23e du mois d'encadre. I am in Lille this morning. It's about 8:30 in the morning, and my husband and I are going to be getting on a train in a little bit to go back to Paris. But I just wanted to start the day off here. It's interesting because I have been to Lille before, up in the north. And it's been a long time though. I was realizing, I think it's been since 2010 or 2011 since I have been here, and the city has changed quite a bit since I was here last time. We're just taking a stroll around because we have a little time before our train, but I was thinking about how when I decided to start my own business and then my husband and I made the decision that we were going to move over here to France no matter what it took, we just made it it happen. And that thought is very comforting to me because I know that you and I have this creative power within us to make things happen. It's just that in most of the conversations that we're part of, we are encouraged to be less than stellar. I'll put it that way. The word that comes to mind is that we're kind of encouraged to be mediocre. We're encouraged to stay where we are. We're encouraged encouraged to play it safe. We're encouraged to not, you know, take risks. And what ends up happening is that we, you know, have all of these years go by when we're not doing what we want to be doing, and then we wake up one day and wonder if it's too late. Well, it's not too late. I am living proof of that. I changed my life in my mid-50s. I'm now 63, and I'm looking at the next chapter, which involves changing my business once again, getting this novel rewritten that I've been working on during this little challenge and getting it out there somehow, some way, passing my French exam so that I can apply for the longer residency card here in France. It's not too late, but what has to happen is that you have to start now. You can't wait until tomorrow or even this afternoon. Start right now. So whatever it is that you are putting off, start it today, literally today, and tell me in the comments what that is. So I am going to get on this train shortly. I will finish this video back in Paris and give you a few more thoughts about all things having to do with making our dreams come true. See you in a bit.
I am back at home in Paris, and that was quite a whirlwind trip. It was about 28 hours from start to finish. Totally worth it. And before I offer some closing remarks on this topic today of not waiting and starting now, I want to give a shout out to everyone involved in the Olympics because everything went very smoothly. There are lots of people around who were available to go to if you had questions. We were fine with everything. We basically knew where we were going, but even still, it was amazing to see how well organized it was. All the volunteers, people pointing you go this way for this Metro or that way for that train, you know, all wonderful signage and everything. It was just amazing. I guess I shouldn't have been too surprised, but you know, frankly, sometimes these things are not as well organized as you hope they would be. This was incredible. So big shout out to everyone involved. And the other thing I want to say was I did practice my French over this last day because I spoke French with a lot of people on the trip. And if you've ever seen this movie called Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis, you'll know that the, uh, in— what do you call it— the, the accent, I guess, up in the northern part of France is quite different from the Parisian accent and is a little bit difficult for me to understand, but I managed. It was okay. So I want to say a couple more words about the idea of starting now because I think we honestly aren't disciplined enough. And I don't mean to sound harsh because I'm looking at myself too. It's not just about you, it's about me too. And when I say discipline, I mean, you know, be real about what we want. Let's be honest about what's not working and start changing it. And don't wait another day, don't wait another week or a month or a year. Oh, I'll wait till XYZ happens. Don't wait. There is no point. You know, as somebody once said a long time ago, I can't remember who it was, said to me, "Time is not going to change much." You know, it's not the factor. It's not the critical factor. So having more time is not the answer to whatever it is that we're waiting to do. There's never a good time for anything. There are always reasons why we think we shouldn't do something. And I have become more and more aware of the fact that time is fleeting. It is not inexhaustible. And so I am doing everything now that I want to do, and I encourage you to do the same. So tell me in the comments, what have you been waiting to do, and are you willing to just do it now instead of waiting for whatever to happen or for someone to give you permission to do it? Nobody's going to do that for you. You've got to do it yourself. Thanks so much for watching. I'll talk to you tomorrow.
