Welcome to The Pause Project! This is all about taking a step back, embracing life’s unexpected turns, and finding meaning in the spaces we create when we pause. I’m Angela Wolstencroft, and I’m diving into a journey that my husband Gary and I decided to embark on—one that’s part break, part exploration, and part leap of faith. 

For us, this all started with a wake-up call. Gary was diagnosed with prostate cancer—not the news we ever expected. Thankfully, he caught it early, and his prognosis is good, but it was a moment that stopped us in our tracks. It made us both realise that life doesn’t wait. Time keeps moving, and someday can quickly turn into never if we don’t make a choice to live now.

We’ve spent so much of our lives focused on work, raising our children, planning for a future that always seemed a bit further away. But with our kids grown and living their own lives, we saw this as a unique opportunity—a chance to take a break from our usual routines and really ask ourselves, ‘What do we want out of this life?’

So, we worked with a financial advisor, did some soul-searching, and made the decision to hit pause—not just on work, but on the endless chase of ‘what’s next.’ We’re stepping away from the hustle to discover what it feels like to live fully, in the moment, without waiting for retirement or the perfect time. We’re trading our to-do lists for new experiences, our emails for open horizons, and our routines for adventure.

This isn’t just our story—it’s a conversation about choosing to live for today, taking a leap of faith, and exploring the world with fresh eyes. And hopefully, it’s an invitation for you to think about what pausing could mean in your own life.

Whether you’re just curious about taking a break, or you’re ready to embrace change, I hope our journey will inspire you to live a little more intentionally, with an open heart and mind.

Here’s to the first step—and to seeing where it takes us.