happy anniversary!
Today marks one year since moving to Auburn, Alabama. It has been an eye-opening experience for me, but not the first time I’ve packed up my life and moved to another state. However, I’ve never lived somewhere with no family for hundreds of miles, and the closest friend is over 100 miles away. Here, I’m truly alone. And while I enjoy my own company, there are times I want social interaction outside of work.
In late 2023, when I announced to family and friends that I was moving to the Deep South, every one of them — even those in North Carolina, which is a southern state — asked a variation of the following:
Them: “Alabama?”
Me: “Yep.”
Them: “Alabama?!!!”
Me: “Yes!”
Them: “Why???!!!”
The burning question for them was, why would a woman who has lived in multiple cities and traveled around the world choose to live in the Deep South, in a state that has an ugly, blistered history of its treatment of minorities, especially its Black population?
I explained that a door opened to a career opportunity that I didn’t want to refuse. I had plateaued at my job, so I jumped at a chance to progress in my career, despite my reservations about moving from a city that was growing at an accelerated rate to a city of less than 200K whose economy centers around a university. But I made the leap.
A year later, I’ve learned a great deal about myself that will help me continue to evolve in this journey of life.
What I learned about life
Resiliency is an important skill to develop if you hope to have a fulfilling life.
The only things I can control in this world are my attitude and how I react.
Family. Over. Everything.
Value the people who show up for you.
What I’ve discovered about myself
As a summer baby (Cancers, stand up!), I don’t love the heat as much as I thought.
While I’m very independent, it’s OK to ask for help.
What I already knew but further confirmed
Southerners are nice, but they’re not kind.
I enjoy my own company. Very much.
Life is what you make it.