A Country/City Girl

Last week, while waiting for the train near West Point to head back to the city... I closed my eyes for a moment.  It was so.... quiet. The only sounds were the Hudson river lapping behind me, crickets, a few birds, and a breeze whistling through the trees. I sat there for an entire 15 minutes just taking it all in.

On the train ride home, I started to think about how much I had enjoyed that moment and I realized that each move I've made, I've develop new and sometimes random appreciations.  Just a few examples:

My first big move was when I was 18 from my home in the St. Paul, Minnesota to Charleston, SC.   Growing up in Minnesota I really had no appreciation for snow. It came every year, why fuss about it?  Snow in Charleston, on the other hand was enough to stop the press (literally, everything shut down). Now whenever it snows, I am a child... seriously ask my co workers, I went outside and danced the last time it snowed.

The second big move was to Charlotte, NC. While in Charleston... I hadn't fully appreciated how easy it was to access GORGEOUS beaches and rich, rich history.  Now, whenever I get a wiff of that salt water smell I instantly feel relaxed (and crave beer). I also try to take advantage of being somewhat near  the ocean here in NYC as much as possible.

My most recent move was to NYC and obviously (while I LOVE this city) I have come to appreciate nature, quiet, and a dark sky to see the stars (seriously.. the sky never gets dark here). Growing up in the Twin Cities, which is a large metropolitan area... I was always craving something more urban. Now that I've had it I'm craving something more, well... rural. Of course there are a million more things I've loved about each city, and a million things that I miss about each of them as well. For the most part though, I've always been ready to move on.

I am so grateful that I have the chance to experience such different places and have come to have an appreciation for the little things. It's funny how life works itself out isn't it? Peter and I are hoping to be headed to Alabama next. If I hadn't had the chance to live in NYC I wouldn't have developed an appreciation for the peace and tranquility that being outside (or nowhere near) a city can bring you... I would have been miserable in AL. Now, the idea of having space, cheap rent, and being in the middle of nowhere is actually pretty exciting!

In the meantime, I'm going to continue trying to take advantage of everything that NYC has to offer!!! I  will continue to chip away at my list and also add new things until life (or the Army) takes me somewhere new!

I love this city....

But, I love this too....