Finding the Right Place ~

It’s the first of the year.

I’ve never been big on resolutions. They feel loud, performative—like promises made before listening. This year doesn’t feel like a year for declarations. It feels like a year for paying attention.

I am so glad that I am home in California. I had found a short-term furnished rental to start. But, I haven’t felt comfortable where I’ve been living. Nothing dramatic. Nothing to point to and say this is wrong. Just a persistent sense that my body is not settled. Like wearing shoes that technically fit, but never quite soften around your feet.

So I’m heading south. Not toward certainty, but toward curiosity. Toward the possibility that somewhere else might feel quieter inside me.

I don’t want to name places, because this isn’t about geography as much as it is about alignment. The right place, I’m learning, isn’t about charm or affordability or what looks good on paper. It’s about how your nervous system responds when you wake up in the morning. It’s about whether your shoulders drop when you step outside.

There are articles that talk about this in simple, human ways. One from Livability explains that choosing where to live is less about ranking cities and more about understanding what truly matters to you—pace, access to nature, community size, and how you want your days to feel. For me, it is about rural living, the mountains, nature, being relatively close to health care. 

I also found an article that compares small towns and larger cities, noting how many people leave crowded places not because they failed there, but because they’re craving quiet, space, and a slower rhythm.

Nature keeps reminding me of this truth. Animals don’t force themselves to stay where conditions aren’t right. Plants lean toward light without apology. Rivers adjust their course when the terrain changes. Nothing in nature stays put out of obligation.

There’s also something grounding about choosing less—less noise, fewer people, fewer expectations. An article on embracing a gentler pace of life speaks to how rural or nature-centered living can offer room to breathe, think, and simply exist without constant stimulation.

So this year, I’m not resolving to be better or braver or more productive. I’m allowing myself to look for where I feel at peace; when my body feels at peace; when the things around me make me feel safe. To trust that discomfort is information. To believe that wanting quiet doesn’t mean I’m retreating—it means I’m listening.

Maybe the right place isn’t something you find once. Maybe it’s something you keep choosing, season by season.

And for now, choosing to keep walking feels like enough.

~ julie

If you feel so inclined, please reply with your thoughts.

Note: JM Lane is NOT a mental health professional, nor does she carry a license to practice medicine. Posts, blogs, and content are based on JM Lane’s personal experiences, perceptions, and reflections. By no means does any material convey what others should or should not do.