This year may have been the fullest yet – I’ve moved, changed jobs, locations, made new friends, separated from old ones, became a part of a new church, community, and small group – the biggest changes I’ve had to date all happened in 2010. Sure there was that year I went to college, but after that I still moved home and was very much living as dependant kid. There was the summer I’d gone to Rome – great experience, but again not life altering and left little permanent change. And the year I’d met my first boyfriend – while enjoyable, still no life-changing experiences. 2010 however, has been full of them! So with this platform, I’d like to share my top 10 of 2010. Here I go (drum roll please):
10. Vacation Time/Time Off: Not once in my life have I enjoyed vacation as in the past year. Working full-time at one job really changes your perspective on down-time; it’s holy. So different in a way that makes you smile and sigh all at once. This year I’ve spent all of my vacation time with people I love – family vacation in Rehoboth, weekend concert with Dad in Philly, time in Lancaster with the extended family and best friends. Just talking about it makes me want to smile, kick up my feet and do… well nothing! Thank goodness for vacation time!
9. The Big Move/My New Location: New Providence, NJ makes to the list. It’s small-town with events and town holiday celebrations, abounds in places I love to frequent (Trader Joe’s, Starbucks, Target, health clubs, parks, exceptional libraries and shopping for come to mind), it’s pretty – full of trees, wildlife, hills, and lots of color with the changing seasons, and I walk a lot when the weather’s nice. It’s a secret of NJ I’m glad to be a part of. (except for the 26″ of snow that just fell on it!) The home I live in is a big part of my enjoyment. I have a place to cook (and many delicious meals were created in 2010 I must add), house my friends, and have a kitty – some of my favorite things for quality of living.
8. Staying in Touch: With a big move, comes the challenge to stay connected to friends and family you had before you left. It is not easy – Equation for keeping in touch: take my jam-packed schedule, try to match it up to my best friends’ ridiculously busy routines( and maybe a time zone change) and see if there is any free-time that coincides. Despite how unlikely it seems, I’ve stayed close to the people who mean most! It has been such a treat to chat on the phone with me CA friends, with enough frequency where we feel like we know what’s up in each other’s lives, g-chat those who are techy multi-taskers such as myself, write notes, and be in frequent conversation with my family. The distance makes the time I’ve had even more special and cherished.
7. My Art Show: Last year I’d been contracted for an exhibit at my favorite gallery in Lancaster (search my older blog posts to read about it). Within this year I painted 10 beautiful acrylic paintings and in November got to display them downtown. The opening is one of the best things I’ve ever gotten to do. I am so happy for all who came to see me and my work that night. It was fun, energetic, and memorable. My artwork, although I was uncertain prior, was so well received and the whole initial wall of art sold by the end of my show. It was such a fun honor!!
6. PCNP: My new church! Yes I work here, but I am talking about the church. It is a super honest, real, life-giving, lively place full of love and support and faith and fun. If it weren’t for this church, I wouldn’t have felt connected, accepted, wanted, or challenged in faith. I am thankful for all that it is! PCNP is a family, a place to grow, a place to learn, a place to express creativity – it’s more like the “church” than many many churches I’ve been to. There is no doubt – God is moving in there.
5. Visits!: Whether it was me visiting others, or others visiting me – time together with people I’m close to has been the best. Just like I mentioned in staying in touch, time together is all the more richer now. It is so much fun to have my mom visit and sleep over – even when we just watch movies, bake and shop for a weekend. Weekends taking the family to NYC or visiting at church, my time going to Lancaster – I love the city even more and more now, so visiting makes my favorite places just sparkle with fascination, hosting friends for a weekend and introducing them to where I live and who I hangout with… the lists goes on but each one was a highlight to my year. One in particular I want to point out was the surprise visit of my brother and sister-in-law for my birthday! April 17th, Matt and Kelly drove from Lancaster,PA to knock on my door and surprise me. They stayed a total of 2 hours where (I showered since I was not expecting this lovely visit had been painting in my pjs!) we went to PCNP, my office, ate chinese food and that was basically it. Just special to have them with me for my birthday.
4. Small Group: In January when I moved, I had to say goodbye to the best small group I ever had. If you’re not familiar with the term, our “small group” was a bunch of 20-Somethings who met once a week in a loft over hot drinks where we talked life, God, issues, highlights, and reality for a couple hours. We knew each other in and out and we cared deeply for everyone there. Saying good bye was hard, that group was one in a million and I relied on them to help me sort through crap that goes on and I loved being there for them in the good and the bad. So… it was a long shot to find anything like that again. But, God as full of awesome unpredictability as he is, formed a small group in my life! I met them one by one, I can remember each encounter – first was Joe – a blind friend date at church, then Carolyn – also a blind friend date, but at Starbucks, then Natalie – a gift from Carolyn, next Michelle – set up to meet by her lovely mom, and lastly Alex – another great relation of Carolyn’s. And there you have it. The tried and true, who’ve come over once a week for a whole year now. We are honest, real, searchers, and learner’s of life together – laughing, growing, and praying as a whole.
3. Ellie: My kitty is awesome. Ok yes I’ve loved cats ever since I was introduced to them at my aunt’s farm at the age of two (I spent the whole time there carting cats around with their legs dangling because I couldn’t quite hold their whole bodies.). But, Ellie, my kitty, is great! It’s just fun to me to have my first cat that I’ve owned on my own. I’m definitely her “person” and it’s fun having a cute, soft, animal follow me around and lay on my lap whenever I sit. My little home-buddy.
2. New Friends: If you haven’t gotten a clue yet, I am a people person. So a big move like this one looks something like moving away from everyone I know and love to a place where I am acquainted with a person. Ha, this looked bit scary and a heck of an exciting challenge. My family and Lancaster/college friends are the tops. They are fantastic. I run off friends and connections like them. One of my biggest prayers in this whole move was friends. I need them! Life for me is awfully lonely and boring without them. And here God did it again! Within 1 month I had met people who are now such fantastic friends that it was almost as if I had never been without. I love these people! We do crazy fun things, like monthly finer movies’ nights, we’ll do silly parties and fancy dinners, we’ll play games and go to concerts, we’ll just chill and chat on the couch or go out to breakfast to catch up. They are great and are the biggest highlight of my move and year. If you are reading this and you do those things with me listed above – I think you’re awesome!
And the top? What could it be? Didn’t I cover everything already?!
1. My Job: “The job?! Really? Am I that material?” No I don’t mean the money. I mean what I do and what the job has done for me. If it weren’t for my new job I would have never moved, I’d have never found a new church community, I’d never have met my friends or gotten my kitty! All of these things listed above may not have ever happened. So the job gets the final tip of the hat. First off, this job is something that on paper I thought – the day I read the description while sipping coffee in Prince Street Cafe, I even remember the exact seat I sat in – well this looks like something I would never land, but it sounds more than perfect! I had no idea a job like this one existed. I love art, I love creativity that comes with graphic design. All that I do in life is creative, and so to design is a fun outlet. But, my experience with design was route and menial “Do this.” or “Make this.” were the commands I’d worked under, making things that other’s had thought up or merely correcting type in books for hours. But this job, this one was a director – they were looking for someone who could create things to support and supplement programs going on. Not only did that sound creative, more of a designer than a dog who did the tricks a boss asked, it was in “communications”. That sounded like fun! Communications is about getting the word out, I love to talk! And here’s the kicker, it was for God! A church job – that sounded daunting and perfect at the same time. My life revolves around God, so a work that feels meaningful was an added bonus. But, I did not have enough resume experience, I had never been in communications, and I haven’t worked in a church. There were so many reasons I looked like an unlikely candidate. The job sounds like it was describing me! And my whole interview process felt right and exhilarating! God wowed me again with this job and continues to everyday. I am constantly challenged, He gets me through. The people I work with are so full of life and fun, love and good leadership and exceptional ideas and passion. I get to be creative and business minded all at the same time. This job I am convinced is better than anything I could’ve dreamed up. It’s fun, thrilling, fast-paced most days, meaningful and enriching.
2010 has been a full year, a great year, and exciting year, a challenging year, a fun year. In ways I can’t quite detect yet, I believe I’ve grown and changed too. With all that happened this past year, I can only wait to see what 2011 brings. Bring on the New Year!!
