5 Months In....

When I moved to Birmingham I thought I would begin to blog more.  I've always loved to write and one of my hopes was that I would use some of my down time to write on this little blog.  As happens with most goals time goes by and life gets in the way.  Instead of writing more I've really more or less neglected this blog of mine.  I've questioned if I should change the name, change the background, change it all.  I started this blog when I moved to NYC and everything about it has centered around my life in Manhattan.  It's still hard for me to believe that I'm not there anymore and honestly I've struggled to want to change anything in my life that is attached to my life there. This blog being one of them.  So for today my blog is going to remain "Dreams and Spaghetti-os: Life in the city"  and my background is going to remain the city skyline.  I still love that city and so much of my heart continues to be there.

But this coming Friday I will have been in Birmingham exactly 5 months.  5 Months!!!  In some ways it feels like yesterday that I said good-bye to that island one last time, but in other ways it feels like my life has been here for much longer.  The last five months of consisted of everything in my life changing and learning to embrace the change that comes with transition.  It's been 5 months of learning how to live in a new city and a new space, 5 months of using my gps because for some reason I still can't remember how to get to most places in this city, 5 months of introducing myself and answering all the questions that come with when you tell someone you are new, 5 months of decorating a new living environment, getting adjusted to living by myself for the first time in my life, and wandering around my new apt not knowing what to do with so much space.  It's been 5 months of feeling out of place most of the time, feeling lonelier than I've ever felt in my life, and starting each day reminding myself that God has brought me here and he will provide for me.

With all the change, all the newness, all the unknowns I have felt closer to the Lord than I've ever felt before.  I've learned to surrender and trust in new ways, and I've learned that the Lord really is your best friend.  Many days He's the only one I feel like I can be completely honest with and He's the only one who really understands what I'm walking through.  It's a sweet place to be... in that place where it's just you and God.  And now that 5 months has passed I'm beginning to see the Lord provide for me in very tangible ways.  As much as I ache for the place and the people that still feel so comfortable I'm embracing this new life and I'm being blessed by what life in Birmingham has given me.  I'm more confident than ever that when we walk with God and follow where he leads us He will provide for us.  This move was a step in faith and I've seen the Lord make the rough places smooth and the dark places light.  He is giving me a life here and providing for me each day exactly what I need.

And so 5 months in I can say I am thankful for this journey and what I have and am learning along the way.  Transitions are hard, but in a way I see it is a privilege to let go of what is comfortable and walk into something new.  I know that I've spent a good majority of the last few months internally kicking and screaming and I don't think that part is over yet, but I want to embrace my life here and be open to the story God is writing.

So here's to 5 months and here's to hopefully bringing this blog back to life....