Showing posts with label thankful. Show all posts
Showing posts with label thankful. Show all posts

Monday, July 23, 2012

Four Years of NC

 Four years ago today, we arrived in North Carolina with an overloaded minivan an no furniture.  After two weeks of sleeping on the floor and scrambling all over the state for interviews, the moving truck caught up with us.

We moved here on a wish and a prayer, due to one eventful black marker and map coloring session.  We eliminated everywhere we DIDN'T want to be, and all that was left after that was the Pacific Northwest and the Southeastern coast.

We'd never set foot in North Carolina, and didn't know anyone who lived here.  But we'd heard good things about the climate and the culture and the people.  So we took a chance, and made a leap of faith.

(Our wedding was a month after the move.  Memo to self: don't do that again!)   


After a month, we both had temporary jobs, and after living in the south for three months, we'd each found teaching jobs that we loved.  A year later, we'd found a fur baby to fill our lives with laughter.  A year and a half after the move, we purchased our house and began putting down roots in earnest.  It's amazing how time flies, yet at the same time feels sluggish.

Why bother wandering memory lane tonight?  Because my experience moving like that taught me that life tends to work itself out.  Sometimes it takes a leap of faith, and sometimes you fall.  But you never know unless you try, and I am so thankful that I have a partner who was willing to tackle the unknown with me.

Happy home-iversary.  I couldn't be happier in my new home state (even when there's thunder and heat happening outside the window).

What risks have you taken lately?

Monday, December 19, 2011

Happy Blogoversary

Today marks the two year anniversary of this blog! Looking back over my old posts, I realize how much I've learned (and how much I still have to learn!)

Delphi joined our lives two years ago, introducing infinite cuteness.



Two years ago, I participated in NaNo for the first time.

Two years ago, I was teaching middle school.

Two years ago, I thought I wanted to write for adults.

Last year, it snowed like crazy here in NC.



One year ago, (give or take) I attended my first real conference.

One year ago, I was still teaching middle school.

One year ago, I connected with a source and started my YA historical novel in verse.

This year, we celebrated three years of marriage. I attempted to recreate our wedding cake, with moderate success. (Grandma made it better!)


This year, I did Nano for the second time.

This year, I stopped teaching middle school and migrated to college.

This year, I embraced my YA-author-ness and started a fantasy trilogy for older teen readers.

Since I started this blog, I've written and rewritten so many stories. I've seen a few more of my poems published, and I've learned how to write a query letter. It's amazing how much I've changed, and I can't wait for the rest of this wild ride.

Thanks for joining me as I explore what it means to live the life of my dreams...

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

The times, they are a changing...

The year is racing to a close, and lots of things seem to be shifting in my little corner of the world.

NaNoWriMo officially ends tonight at midnight, and I'm close to completing the novel that I began this month: I'm at 56k right now, and I think the story is winding down. I aim for 60-65 at first, because evidently I write backwards: for as much as I slash on my revisions, I tend to add, too. Then I'll put the book away, not to be opened until December 25th at the earliest (no, it's not a Christmas present, it's part of my holiday travel reading). I'm excited to see where the story is taking me, and it's a strange thought to realize I will be setting it down at all, let alone for most of a month.

Then there's my day job. I'm nearing the end of my first semester teaching community college, and it's strange to realize that I won't see these students again. It's probably a good thing semesters are short, because I am reaching the point with some of my students where I am starting to wish we were friends, and I know better. Boy, do I know better!

I'll be teaching again next semester, and I got the word today that I'll be adding an online course for the university that I TA for: I'll still be TAing, but I'll also be teaching in 2012. This is a major shift, and one that I've been waiting for for a very long time.

And then there's the novel. It's out there in agent land, where I've been devotedly querying for the past two months. Hopefully, I will hear good news on that front soon.

All this change has prompted me to look back with a truly thankful heart. Things have fallen into place for me better than I could have imagined, and I know that I am very lucky. So, with that in mind, what changes (large or small) are you thankful for?

Sunday, July 10, 2011

In thanks...

...to Mother Earth and for the bountiful abundance in my life, I am drawn to the words of Whitman.

Walt Whitman (1819–1892). Leaves of Grass. 1900.

I CELEBRATE myself;
And what I assume you shall assume;
For every atom belonging to me, as good belongs to you.

I loafe and invite my Soul;
I lean and loafe at my ease, observing a spear of summer grass.


What are you thankful for today?