I've lived in quite a few different places over the years. I began life in Ohio and lived in that state until the summer I turned fifteen. At that point, my father's job took us to South Carolina, where I spent the next three years making friends and absorbing a whole new unexpected culture. During the next phase of my journey, I ended up in Iowa. I went there for school and pretty much stayed there most of the next twelve years after marrying someone who also had family there. My life changed again when that marriage fell apart and I moved to Georgia to be close to my parents.
While I've made friends everywhere I've lived and enjoyed various things about each place, Georgia is the only place I've never wanted to move away from. I'm not saying Georgia is the best place I've ever lived. It's just that this is the place my heart tells me I should be.
When I was growing up in Ohio, I was always curious about new places. I enjoyed going on cross country trips with my family. I loved meeting people from new places. I always wanted to explore and I was definitely open to the idea of moving someplace different.
South Carolina met that requirement in ways I never imagined possible. I got to see the ocean for the first time. I was able to hike small mountains and appreciate the sweetness of fruit grown in red clay. Even more interesting was exploring a culture I had read about in my history books, but never really knew or understood until I found myself living in the middle of it. It was all wonderful and all worth it! Still, it wasn't really home.
Iowa was perhaps the place I had the most trouble living in. Between college, my job, and the church I attended I had lots of good, solid friends. There was a great deal of beauty in the rolling farmland and the colorful sunrises and sunsets. Still, I was never content there, never at home. I always felt like I wanted to be somewhere else the whole time I lived there without ever understanding why.
The why is that my heart was calling me elsewhere. It knew I was not meant to be in Iowa forever. It knew there was somewhere else I needed to put down roots. Consequently when I ended up in Georgia (pretty much kicking and screaming in the beginning), my life began to take on a more calm and settled quality.
I was very broken when I came to Georgia. I had been trying to keep my ten+ year marriage afloat while raising three very small children and I was literally exhausted. My parents welcomed us with open arms, and I found even more family in the church we attended. As I healed, I began to appreciate the world I had ended up in. While Georgia has many of the same geographical features South Carolina has, it also has a much more cosmopolitan approach to life and the world thanks to Atlanta and its international airport. While I am still curious about various places and peoples around the world, I find myself wanting the visit those places but see myself coming back home to Georgia.
Georgia is the first place I feel settled--the first place I truly never want to leave for more than a vacation. I love exploring the countryside. I enjoy wandering in the city. I know that mountains and beaches are easy drives away. I love the fact that Georgia still has four seasons but the winters are mild. There are many days when I look at my husband and say, "I'm so happy to be in Georgia!", and indeed I am!
Your heart knows what your adventures need to be. Your heart knows where your best interests lie. That's because your heart is your connection to God/Source/Oneness. If you are discontent with anything, understand that is the wisdom of your heart calling you to change. Trust its guidance. It will lead you home.
~CSE
