There was a show on public television from 1990-1995 called "Keeping Up Appearances". According to IDMb, it is a show about "A snobbish housewife is determined to climb the social ladder, in spite of her family's working class connections and the constant chagrin of her long suffering husband." I remember my dad, a big British humor fan, watching the show. Hyacinth, the female lead was constantly trying to portray herself as an upscale lady, despite her life circumstances to the contrary. It was the stuff that made for great comedy.

The truth of the matter though, is that there is probably a little bit of Hyacinth in each of us, at least one time or another. I remember having a conversation with my first husband many years ago. It was something about winning the Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes. I'm not sure what sparked it, but it ended up with him accusing me of caring so much about appearances that I wouldn't answer the door to win the Publishers Clearing House on film if I were still in my pajamas looking less than stellar. The sad thing was, at that point in my life I was so insecure, he was probably right. Ironically that was also probably one of the least stylish times in my life. I suspect jammies and disheveled wasn't much of a loss.

Life's roads have many twists and turns. Sometimes we even end up retracing our steps. There are accidents to avoid, unexpected detours and sometimes bad weather to endure or avoid. But occasionally, life takes a 180 degree turn that we never see coming. There are no warnings and more importantly, no way back. The bridge washes out. There is no way to get back to where you were. That is when one life ends and another begins anew.

For me that began on September 7, 2016. It was one of those dates that are so life impacting that you remember the date with vivid detail. I was 7 days into a new job as a special ed teacher at a new district with a new principal and new superintendent. Lots of "new".