There’s more to life than social media — and here’s how I’m living it.

When I moved back home to California this past December, it was a whirlwind. Within a month, I had quit my job, gotten a new one that paid significantly more, ended a relationship, turned down my new job, and decided to leave New York City — all within a matter of two weeks. New York City had been my home for the past five years. When I made the decision to leave New York, I was battling severe depression and anxiety — the remnants of the heartbreaking divorce that I had asked for two years prior.

I went straight to Phoenix, Arizona, where my mother now lives. Phoenix in December is stunning — clear skies, pure air, sunsets that could melt the hearts of the most talented of artists. I felt a peace I hadn’t felt in so long that attempting to quantify it would be futile and likely inaccurate.

From Phoenix, I made my way home to Southern California, where I had grown up and spent the first 24 years of my life.

I found a comfortable job at a respected institution. I reconnected with childhood friends. I moved in with my father and two brothers, with whom I have spent more time in the past three months than I’ve spent in the past 15 years. Living on my own was definitely a viable option for me given my salary, but working on my relationship with these three men was an opportunity…