I wanted to spend a little time today talking about something that has been on my mind. I have been thinking about how much Cape Cod has changed since the first time I went there, which is peculiar because my first time REALLY visiting was not that long ago at all!

Our first visit was several years back, but it was the 4th of July and everything was so busy we hardly had the time or space to see anything. The second time was with Maddux, just about a year ago. This time was much more memorable. I remember the cold wind, the dead grass, the busy roads, the lack of gas stations...

I remember thinking that it was too cold for beaches. It was too desolate for fun. It was old, run-down and freezing. In fact, I didn't like it - AT ALL. I remember thinking, "this is nothing like the beaches on the west coast." Who knew that in that way of thinking was both the problem and the solution with thinking Cape Cod was the absolute worst?

A few months later, we ventured back. This time, I thought I would go to a different side of the Cape. Perhaps that was where I would find the beauty I had heard about. Maybe that was where I would fall in love with the Cape.

This time around, I found all of that! Beauty, joy, life, restaurants, people, flowers, great beaches... all of it! I was in Provincetown and I thought that it was just the hidden gem of the Cape. This place was magic. In fact, I decided then and there that someday I would buy a second home, a cape house with the white marble rock outside, right in this very town. I loved it!

After loving the Cape, I knew I had to go back. A few weeks ago, we made the long trek down. I decided to check out the places I had been the first time I went because it would save us about two hours on our trip. What I found was mind blowing...

We visited all of the same places I had hated the first time, and they were beautiful! We found something to eat, we found a gas station, we hung out near the beach, we had the time of our lives. It was beautiful! I loved every second!

The more I wondered what changed so much about the Cape in only a year, the more I realized it hadn't changed at all. I had. "This is nothing like the beaches on the west coast." Of course it isn't, and it isn't supposed to be! Over the last year I have thrown all my reasons to dislike Massachusetts and the east coast out of the window and learned to embrace the area we have called home for three years. I started traveling and adventuring with my son as a form of overcoming depression and anxiety about our new home, and I grew to love it. I learned that it's different from where I grew up and that's just fine! I learned that I can love both of them for different reasons and that they both have wonderful things that make them unique. I changed my perspective and perception of what I expected the east coast to be and allowed it to be beautiful for what it was, and I fell in love with it. Now I obsess over the rocky (yet still chilly ;) beaches, I love the small-town-lighthouse-coastal-charm of the Cape. I love that it's quiet and everything is old. That means it has a history. Traveling all over this part of the US has truly changed my mind about incredible it is.

The point I am trying to make is that changing my expectation for what a place should be and seeing it for what it was opened my eyes to so much beauty and appreciation. I think we can apply this idea to a lot more aspects of life than just Cape Cod if you catch my drift ☺️ Happy Thursday!