There's a woman I follow on Instagram named Kim Hale, and if you haven't come across her yet, I think you're going to love her.

At 56 years old, Kim packed up her life in California and moved back to New York City to pursue a dream she'd carried since she was a young dancer: performing on Broadway.

Now, as someone who spent 11 years of her life working as a musical theater actress, I can tell you that moving to New York to audition for Broadway shows is a pretty gutsy thing to do at ANY age. The competition is fierce, the rejection is practically a job requirement, and there are no guarantees that all your hard work will ever lead to the role you're hoping for.

But Kim went anyway.

She'd spent years away from professional dancing, building a life and career that took her in other directions. Eventually, she found her way back into a dance studio, rediscovered how much she loved performing, and decided she wasn't finished with that particular dream.

And here's what I find so wonderful about her story.

Kim hasn't landed the Broadway contract she's working toward. But along the way, she's performed onstage in Chicago for a special one-night appearance, booked regional theater work, performed in a New York play, and inspired an enormous community of people who are cheering her on.

She's living an adventure she couldn't have experienced if she'd decided that 56 was too old to begin again.

One of the messages Kim shares is something Broadway choreographer Jerry Mitchell once told her: "Dreams have no deadline."

I absolutely love that.

But her story has also made me think about something a little different.

What happens when the dreams themselves change?

When I was younger, I loved performing. Musical theater was a huge part of my life, and for years, the stage was where I imagined my future.

Today? I have absolutely no desire to pack up my life and return to auditioning for musicals. I have wonderful memories of that chapter, but I don't miss it. I don't feel like there's some unfinished piece of myself waiting for another chance at the spotlight.

And I think that's pretty wonderful, too.

Because somewhere along the way, I discovered dreams I didn't even know I was capable of having.

I fell in love with teaching yoga. I built an online studio and a community of women whose enthusiasm for learning and supporting one another makes me excited to show up for work every day. I've discovered how much I love helping people do things they once thought were beyond their abilities.

And now, as I approach my 50th birthday, I find myself dreaming about where all of this might go next.

None of that was part of the plan when I was a young actress.

I couldn't have imagined this life because I hadn't yet become the person who would want it.

And I wonder how many of us forget that we're allowed to keep discovering new things about ourselves.

We spend so much of our younger years imagining what our lives will look like. We make plans, pursue careers, fall in love, build families, develop interests, and figure out what matters to us.

But why would that process ever need to stop?

Think about how much you've changed in the last 10 or 20 years. Think about everything you've learned, the people you've met, the experiences that have surprised you, and the things you love today that you never gave a second thought to when you were younger.

Why wouldn't the next 10 or 20 years hold just as many surprises?

I see little versions of this in my yoga studio all the time.

A student who has practiced for decades suddenly discovers a new way of approaching a posture. Another tries something she never imagined she'd be interested in learning. Someone accomplishes something that wasn't even on her radar a few months earlier.

And what I love most isn't necessarily the accomplishment. It's the excitement that comes with discovering something new about yourself.

That feeling doesn't have an age limit, and I hope none of us ever loses our appetite for it.

Kim Hale is following a dream that has stayed with her for decades. I'm following dreams that didn't exist for me decades ago.

Both are beautiful reminders that we have absolutely no idea what wonderful things might still be waiting for us.

So as we begin a brand-new month, I have a question for you.

What are you curious about becoming, learning, experiencing, or doing next?

It doesn't need to be something enormous. You don't need to move to New York City, change careers, or have a five-year plan.

Maybe there's something you've always wanted to try. Maybe an old interest is calling you back. Or maybe, like me, you're discovering entirely new things that make you excited about the future.

Whatever it is, I hope you give yourself the opportunity to explore it.

Because one of the most exciting things about getting older is realizing how many wonderful possibilities you haven't even imagined yet.

And wouldn't it be fun to find out what's next?

Big Hugs,

Tori G. 💗