and while it's hard for me to remember the details of or wedding day, there are a few things I can tell you.
It was my last night living in the city I always took for granted
a city of blue mountains with white snow shimmering on the top
a place where people were willing to smile and talk to you - complete strangers.
My family and friends were all there, in this one place, and if I needed anything my best friend would drive to my house in 10 minutes.
If I stepped out of my house, took 50 steps down the street and looked west, I saw Pikes Peak booming over Colorado Springs. This was my view every single day.
I can still smell the green face masks and feel their cooling effect as my younger sister and I giggled away to the sight of our green monster faces.
I can still hear the gun shots going off downstairs where my younger brother was playing Call of Duty.
I still remember the long discussions I would have with my parents when all the daycare kids were gone and the house was silent and still - their words were comforting and encouraging and got me through any of life's struggles.
Being the oldest of three, I always felt I had an important role to the family.
I was the leader, the role model, and the example.
It was hard to walk away during my brother's senior year of high school and my sister's first year of middle school.
I missed all her plays, and his graduation in May.
On November 7, 2009 I was married
and on November 8, 2009 I moved 1,500 miles away
to Lake Mary, Florida.
The first night in my condo is when everything started to settle down, and my mind went ballistic with questions and thoughts. What just happened?
David and I had a whirlwind romance. Met in September, started dating in January, engaged in May, and married in November. We met at New Life Church as we were both training to be worship leaders at New Life School of Worship. I was instantly drawn to him; he was a magnet. We went through pre-maritial counseling so we found out things about each other that way, but the honest truth is that we are only really starting to get to know each other as I type this. We knew we were getting into a marriage where we would have to grow and change with one another.
And that's what we have been doing.
I've made new family - his family
And I've made new friends
I haven't seen mountains, but I've seen oceans
and now if I go out my front door and go down the stairs, there is a lake with a variety of birds and wildlife that I see every morning.
God's beauty has not left me.
It has not walked away.
His beauty is in the small things,
the unexpected things.
I have to admit that I didn't see this right away.
I had to go through months of sadness and pain to get to the place where I am today, which is contentment. I may not always want to live here, and I may complain about the humidity every day, but I'm suppose to be here for my husband.
And whether I'm in hightops or flatlands, that's what I plan on doing.
