A New Town, A New Chapter

I think I’ve been thinking about this move to Santa Cruz all wrong.

It’s hard to let go of a place that you love, and so it has been hard to let go of my time in Portland, Oregon.  Probably one of the best places I can imagine living, anywhere in the world.  The Northwest is just a different type of place.  A slower pace of life, a more earth centric way of living, friendly down-to-earth people, and unbelievable food; just to mention a few things.  I really did love it there, but we moved to Santa Cruz to be closer to family – which was a VERY good decision.

But like I said, I’ve been thinking about this all wrong.  I think, deep down, I’ve been a little bitter about having to leave Portland – but it doesn’t have to be that way.  It just depends on how I look at it.

What I realized tonight, is that now begins a new chapter in my life.  Sure it’s cliche and all to say “thus begins a new chapter” – but it’s true.  Let’s see, I can summarize the last 10 – 15 years in chapters:

  1. 1997-2001 High School
  2. 2001-2003 The Dark ages (aka, Moorpark College, travelling, and the lung collapse)
  3. 2003-2004 Azusa Pacific, transformation, Robin Dawn Harrold
  4. 2005-2008 Youth Ministry years, married life, the beginning of Parenting
  5. 2008-2011 Portland, Oregon, Web Design, more parenting
And now… a new chapter: Santa Cruz.
And I have no idea how long this chapter will be, but I know a few things:
  • I can learn a lot from my in-laws, as well as my parents
  • I will learn a lot about building things: fences, patios, play-houses, gardens, etc.
  • I can enter into my thirties, and actually become an adult that cares about adult things (like my children’s education, our communities safety, etc)
Basically it hit me… I’m in a new place, with new people, and new situations.  Rather than being bummed about that, or focusing on what I left behind… I can focus all my attention and energy on what I can learn from this period of my life.
In the last period of my life, I learned a lot about how to interact with people.  The Northwest is a great place to learn how to be hospitable, friendly, and community oriented.  I learned how things like how to shake someone’s hand, what to say when you pass a stranger on a walk, how to start a small conversation with a stranger at a store… little things that I was never taught and was always afraid of.  I grew a lot in this way in Portland.
I wonder how I will grow in this chapter…
Posted by on Oct 26, 2011 in Life | 0 comments

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