MEET VIRGINIA: A PRETTY BLUR OF BRICK + TREES

Meet our new city, Charlottesville, via snap shots from the car, sans two. This city is made up of trees and brick, red and
green, and trees and brick…

Wow.

We’re here. Virginia has been home for ten
whole days, and I don’t know if words alone will explain how I’ve been feeling.
I mean, I’ll be as simple as it gets and say this: everything is so normal. But
describing moving to the opposite coast of my country,
living in a totally foreign city, and seeing so many different demographics in
people and places as “normal” is beyond
me.

For instance. The lack of mountains? No big
deal. Haven’t batted an eye at how trees envelope every inch of this ground, and that I don’t look up at anything but leaves (…and considering my love for
Mt. Timpanogos, I cannot believe I just said that). Or the totally different
cultures? Well, the other day as I ran up my street, I understood a bit of that
conversation between those Chinese people, and I so felt the soul vibes from
those Black singers in the parking lot of Krogers. Their song could’ve been my
own, it was so smooth. Oh and the humidity? I guess it’s hot, but hasn’t the
climate always been this way??

There have been sooo many cases in the
last ten days that have made this point: I’m an extremely blessed girl and
there are some serious prayers being answered. Like I know that my mom and dad have prayed for
our easy adjustment. They knew my hesitations about this mega move. So to think that I love
this new country like it’s my hometown is nothing short of miraculous to me (and to them, I’m sure).

Maybe our next move won’t be this way. In
fact, I’ll count on that. I’ll expect to have that huge curve thrown my way –
the one with culture shock, homesickness, and everything else hard. Because
this feeling so “normal” thing really isn’t normal, I know.

Feeling so grateful. *I’m amazed that this state of being is actually my own.
Did you know that God lives and answers prayers? You should. Because He does.

*I mean, we’ve had stressful moments. We came
without a good chunk of furniture, so we’ve been Craigslist hunting, etc., for the
past week and I tell you…wow. But that’s another post for another day (coming
soon).