Fresh Start Energy

I turned 65 in October of 2025.

It felt like a mile marker in more ways than one. The fear I thought I had made peace with didn’t knock—it crept in slowly and then showed up wearing a party hat. Loud. Unavoidable. There’s good in this age too, of course. Plenty of it. But the fear had something to say, and I had to listen.

I’m 65 with no savings and no assets. And still, I’ve had an amazing life—just not a conventional one.

Only a few people really know this about me: I lived in a convent. That’s a hard place for a tomboy who wanted to see the world. My mother thought I wasn’t a “good enough” Catholic, so there I was. The experience left me angry—but it also strengthened my prayer life. I prayed constantly. Just not for the things the church thought I should be praying for.

I prayed for a way out. A get-out-of-jail-free card.

That prayer was answered.

After my junior year, my mother told me she wouldn’t be paying my senior tuition. I was going to be of legal age soon anyway. As a defiant teenager, I declared I didn’t need her—exactly the reaction she was hoping for. Off to the bus station we went. Eighty dollars bought a ticket to anywhere.

That was the first time I realized I’d been carrying fear for a very long time.

So here I am now, with a few years left before retirement age, asking myself some honest questions:

Who am I now? What do I want to make—for myself? Do I even know myself anymore?

This year is about fresh start energy. Slowing down. Refreshing myself.

I’ve been asking a different kind of question lately: How do I make my home about me—not my material belongings? How do I carry my home inside myself?

What do I value going forward?

One thing I know for certain: I love nature. It costs me nothing to be grateful for Mother Earth. With that renewed energy, I’m revamping Paper Pleasures—sharing images of nature through wrapping paper, note cards, and photographs. Wrapping paper is useful, and the time spent designing it brings me calm.

Will it support me financially in retirement? Probably not. It’s not a year-round big seller. T-shirts are, though—so yes, those are coming too.

I also think about the young woman whose life is just beginning. What do I want to leave behind for her? I want her life to be easier. Less stressed than mine was. Because at 68, I don’t want to be a bagger at Publix.

That’s why I’m revamping Digs & Nooks and bringing it into Paper Pleasures.

I want her home to be a place where her heart can grow.

I’m not a therapist. I don’t have advice. We all walk our own path. But can I help her stay organized? Yes. There are products that genuinely help us feel less overwhelmed in our daily lives. Can I help her make her home feel cozy—a restful retreat from the world? Maybe yes.

So Digs & Nooks becomes a way to offer comfort: cozy throw blankets, candles, bed linens that invite rest. Surroundings that feel peaceful and calm. Things that encourage self-care so we can be healthier people.

As a senior, I’m letting go of many things—physically and emotionally—while learning how to live with the realities of aging. I want to be calm. I want to be useful—not just in survival mode. That’s why I share things like cooking for one, slowing down, and simplifying.

This is what creating looks like for me now. A quiet journey.

It feels like January—no matter the month. From my view at the table, it’s simple, real, and very much a work in progress. I remind myself daily that I don’t have to do everything all at once.

It’s a digital world, but there’s still something about paper. I’m drawn to it.

What are you being drawn to?