New Beginning. The old is gone. The new has come. Fresh start! It's what I've hoped for, for a long time. It's what I thought I would have when I moved to Auburn, AL, but alas, no dice. It was a wonderful time, Yes!! ~a time of growth, and a time of accomplishment for all of us. It was a 2 year morph in the way we think, totally changing our patterns and definitions of what is acceptable. It wasn't our new beginning, but our wake up call to see some things clearly for the first time. In many ways it was a teaser ~ a hiatus as we healed and prepared to unknowingly step back into the VA fray. The sabbatical ended when we moved back here. Anyone who read my "Merry Christmas part 1" blog post can see a tiny sliver of how we moved back to more of the same old same old with one exception: I see things differently now. So when the new year came up, I thought, "Whew! Glad that's over. FINALLY, it's time to start afresh, right?"
January just held more of the same. The two milestone times for change (moving and new year) came and went in a trudging fashion. We had a fun time ringing in the new year with friends but once again I felt no change nor start of anything different. Just when I thought it wasn't going to happen, I felt the change. Around mid January there was a shift in my life. I can't describe it well, but it's a spiritual shift that can only be experienced, not properly explained. I started getting a sense that an era was finally ending. And I mean ending-ending. Not only was God ending a chapter of my life, but an entire book!! YAY! A new book means I don't have to continue the old story line any more. Not even a sequel! He's setting us up for something completely new. I began letting go, closing things down, and moving on. Thank you, God!
Moving on to what? I'm not sure yet. I don't have a sense at the moment that we'll be physically moving anytime soon, (but let's be honest, that's always a wild card in our lives). Instead, I sense that the second half of January, all of February and who-knows-how-much-longer will finish this "ending cycle", freeing us up to walk into something new here very soon. Partially, we already have started to walk into some new things, but more on that as it develops. And I'm anticipating more and more to come. I'll hopefully keep you posted.
I went to church today and the entire service was dedicated to this exact same thing. The time is now. New starts. Shifting directions. Closing of one era to usher in a new one. Milestones. Markers in the sand. "From this day forth!" type stuff. They said this service was for me and I believe it. I wondered when to publish this post. ***I wanted to have a more sure explanation of the "new" before posting, but after the service today confirmed what I've been feeling/experiencing for months, I figured it's time to push "post." Hopefully this is an encouragement to some of you out there. I love that some have walked with us on this crazy path. Although we've lost some loved ones along the way, It is our hope that many of you will continue with us and others will be added. The best is yet to come! Thanks for being a part (in whatever way) of our community. It really does take a village. Glad you're a part of mine!
