WELCOME HOME...
Danielle and I arrived in Philadelphia on Wednesday, along with all five of my bags. Driving home I was in somewhat of a shock. As the familiar skyline came into view I thought of the night before being in a tiny California country town with my California country family. I had told my aunt I was used to goodbyes, and was not anticipating any tears. Then as my grandma, also my dear friend, hugged me goodbye, and whispered a blessing into my ear, I began to cry. The classic saying- "You don't know what you've got till it's gone," felt quite appropriate.
I have loved my last six months spent with family and friends in California. It was well needed; however, when I saw the skyline come into view, I felt like all was well. We arrived in our neighborhood, which will take some getting used to in and of itself, and our house was just as warm and welcoming as I had remembered. I loved the kitchen with the deep sinks, and exposed brick, I loved the long dinning room table where warm meals shared together are frequently enjoyed, I loved the idea that I made number 11 living in this wild house in the middle of a wild neighborhood. We went up to see the room Danielle and I would inevitably be sharing. It was tiny, but bigger than I had remembered. As was our baby closet in the hall. We could make it work. I was confident. That is until we carted up my five bags and guitar. I began to feel myself get overwhelmed, but the humor and peace of friends calmed me. I went to bed that night a bit disheveled, but peaceful, scheming about what would go where and how.
The next morning I awoke, and tried to tackle the chaos that was my new life. There was little I could do as I had no furniture, or places to store things. I read the news, and was saddened by an assassination, a war, and malnourished children. A few of my roommates were buzzing about downstairs, but I stayed up in my cluttered cave until I decided to brave the journey, and headed out to visit Danielle at her work. Before I left my roommate drew me a map, and gave me tips on how to walk in the area. I left feeling a bit intimidated. After spending a year in wild places with 17 other girls, and having one by your side at all times, venturing out solo can seem terrifying. But I did it, and found that everyone was kind, busy living life themselves. I was sorry I had let my view of the world in all it's craziness take me to a new level of fear. I am anxious to have my preconceptions of this neighborhood be broken. On my walk down to Danielle's work, I found an amazing wooden dresser on the curbside free for the taking. My dear friend Lindsey was also at the coffee shop, and offered me her mini van to transport the dresser. It was brutally heavy, and we were thankful for the help offered immediately by two very kind men. I was all smiles, as I realized this would be a wonderful new adventure.
That night I was up in my room organizing, while my roommates were having company over. I was surprised when someone came up and asked if I wanted to join them for dinner. I was even more shocked when I went down to find a place setting didn't even need to be added to the table. The rest of the night was spent laughing as they shared stories about growing up together. I sat there, not knowing what they were talking about, but feeling completely included in the conversation. At one point I was overwhelmed by how right it felt to be sitting there, with these strangers/friends, and how thankful I was to be living again in community. The boys helped get my dresser up the stairs, and I spent the rest of the night filling it up.
The next day two of my roommates and I collaborated on building a bed for me. After quite a time of discussing options, we decided to go ahead and cut down the legs of four of our bar stools and use them for the four corners of my new bed. As one roommate went out to get new barstools, the other and I worked on transforming the old ones into a new bed. I loved the creativity, the willingness to help me out, and the fun we all had while in the midst of the project.
I am sitting on it now. It's amazing. I still have a few little kinks to work out in terms of storage, but I feel that this could really become home. Finally.
Danielle and I arrived in Philadelphia on Wednesday, along with all five of my bags. Driving home I was in somewhat of a shock. As the familiar skyline came into view I thought of the night before being in a tiny California country town with my California country family. I had told my aunt I was used to goodbyes, and was not anticipating any tears. Then as my grandma, also my dear friend, hugged me goodbye, and whispered a blessing into my ear, I began to cry. The classic saying- "You don't know what you've got till it's gone," felt quite appropriate.
I have loved my last six months spent with family and friends in California. It was well needed; however, when I saw the skyline come into view, I felt like all was well. We arrived in our neighborhood, which will take some getting used to in and of itself, and our house was just as warm and welcoming as I had remembered. I loved the kitchen with the deep sinks, and exposed brick, I loved the long dinning room table where warm meals shared together are frequently enjoyed, I loved the idea that I made number 11 living in this wild house in the middle of a wild neighborhood. We went up to see the room Danielle and I would inevitably be sharing. It was tiny, but bigger than I had remembered. As was our baby closet in the hall. We could make it work. I was confident. That is until we carted up my five bags and guitar. I began to feel myself get overwhelmed, but the humor and peace of friends calmed me. I went to bed that night a bit disheveled, but peaceful, scheming about what would go where and how.
The next morning I awoke, and tried to tackle the chaos that was my new life. There was little I could do as I had no furniture, or places to store things. I read the news, and was saddened by an assassination, a war, and malnourished children. A few of my roommates were buzzing about downstairs, but I stayed up in my cluttered cave until I decided to brave the journey, and headed out to visit Danielle at her work. Before I left my roommate drew me a map, and gave me tips on how to walk in the area. I left feeling a bit intimidated. After spending a year in wild places with 17 other girls, and having one by your side at all times, venturing out solo can seem terrifying. But I did it, and found that everyone was kind, busy living life themselves. I was sorry I had let my view of the world in all it's craziness take me to a new level of fear. I am anxious to have my preconceptions of this neighborhood be broken. On my walk down to Danielle's work, I found an amazing wooden dresser on the curbside free for the taking. My dear friend Lindsey was also at the coffee shop, and offered me her mini van to transport the dresser. It was brutally heavy, and we were thankful for the help offered immediately by two very kind men. I was all smiles, as I realized this would be a wonderful new adventure.
That night I was up in my room organizing, while my roommates were having company over. I was surprised when someone came up and asked if I wanted to join them for dinner. I was even more shocked when I went down to find a place setting didn't even need to be added to the table. The rest of the night was spent laughing as they shared stories about growing up together. I sat there, not knowing what they were talking about, but feeling completely included in the conversation. At one point I was overwhelmed by how right it felt to be sitting there, with these strangers/friends, and how thankful I was to be living again in community. The boys helped get my dresser up the stairs, and I spent the rest of the night filling it up.
The next day two of my roommates and I collaborated on building a bed for me. After quite a time of discussing options, we decided to go ahead and cut down the legs of four of our bar stools and use them for the four corners of my new bed. As one roommate went out to get new barstools, the other and I worked on transforming the old ones into a new bed. I loved the creativity, the willingness to help me out, and the fun we all had while in the midst of the project.
I am sitting on it now. It's amazing. I still have a few little kinks to work out in terms of storage, but I feel that this could really become home. Finally.
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