The Country

We are in the Country now. You may have noticed that I’ve been off the blogging radar screen for several months. Well, a lot has happened to Barry and I in the past three or four months! After learning in March that my mother had been diagnosed with colo-rectal cancer, Barry and I made the life altering decision to pull up stakes where we were living in Pennsylvania and relocate to the  Country in Southwest Virginia. So, on June 17th,  I quit my job as an administrative assistant with the Baltimore County Police Department after 16 years of service.

I did this in large part due to my mother’s illness, but I had also known (before I met Barry) that at some point in the future, I wanted things in my life to change. I felt a pulling to get back to my roots and lead a less hectic and stressful life in the country. Don’t we all crave that? But not many get to actually see it happen. I am blessed to have an understanding and adventurous husband who luckily, felt the same way.

I am thrilled to share that my mother is now cancer free and getting back on her feet, so this move is made all the sweeter with the knowledge that she is here (along with my dad) to guide us in future endeavors and just be part of our lives.

As time has passed though, it’s really caused me to reflect on life and I thought I’d share with you some pretty cool revelations I’ve had about leaving the big city and returning to my country roots…

 

Fantastic things that have happened since coming home to the country:

• Life got quiet. No honking horns. A lot less traffic lights. I’ve actually started to breathe again and truly notice things.
• You take the time to really appreciate nature – plants and their colors, birds and even the creepy crawlies!
• Time goes at a crazy fast speed. When you enjoy what you’re involved in – no more staring at the clock trying to will yourself to be somewhere else.
• I’ve been able to reconnect with family. I spend a lot more time with my parents and even aunts and cousins that normally I wouldn’t have seen until a family reunion!
• You get to reinvent yourself and start over in the job market – Total sense of having a clean slate and starting fresh!
• You meet new people! Working in the same place for many years, you come to know the same set of faces. Interviewing and networking exposes you to a whole set of new faces, new personalities and new possibilities!
• It provides an opportunity to grow your part time business. Having down time from a 9 to 5 job has allowed me to learn more about herbs and essential oils so I can create new products!

 

Life can indeed throw you some unexpected and unplanned curve balls, but I’m learning that if you just “go with it” and try to learn what you can out of each of those pitches, you’ll not only be the wiser for it in the end, you actually can sit back and enjoy.

What curve balls have been thrown at you this year?

 

Looking for a “better way to live,”

Cathy