Timing is Everything



I bought this bookmark from a cute store I found not far from my little brother's house in Dover, Delaware.  It was the beginning of summer (early May) when I bought it.  I have kept it on my desk all summer as I worked on various projects and schoolwork.  I find it inspiring and hopeful and hope it does the same for you when you read these words!

I also had a revelation last night as I returned to High Point from Morehead City/Atlantic Beach.  It was a 4 hour drive so there was a lot of time for self reflection/prayer.  I had just spent 1.5 days with a former student and his parents from York.  They kindly invited me to their beach home in NC.  It was surreal to be there again since the last time I had been there was in August 2009 right before my last babysitting week.  Then, I knew that I would see them in a few short weeks since school would be starting up at the end of the month in York.  This time, I couldn't say when I would see them again since I most likely won't be going home for the holidays this year. 

I'm heading to PA for the last time until ??? in 2 weeks.  I will be back up there for part of my Fall Break but it will be such a rushed trip and spent on the road heading to and from Baltimore.  I will drive up one day, go to a show (an awesome one at that) on the second day, then return to NC the third day since it will be smack in the middle of my semester and I know I will be swamped with work/research/prep for the class I'm teaching.  Soooo this weekend that I'm going to PA in 2 weeks is my last chance to just truly enjoy being with family and hopefully some friends.  The downside to having friends all over the state is that by the time I get up to PA from NC, it's difficult to make the rounds and see everyone in various cities/locations across the best state ever due to time constraints, logistics, and coordinating of schedules.  I had to laugh yesterday as I drove 4 hours back to High Point from the beach, my Dad was driving back to Frackville from Delaware, Mark (from Philly) was in Myrtle Beach for vacation, and Brian was heading to Alabama this morning.  In the space of 24 hours, my immediate family was spaced out over SC, DE, NC, and AL.  No wonder the love of seeing important people in my life in locations near and far is in my blood!  For those who have gone out of their way to visit and come to me during the few times I'm home and/or in NC during these years, I'll be forever grateful.  It's those little moments and knowing that they're willing to see me in spite of coordinating and distances, that sustain me during the sometimes lonely times down here in the "South". 

Another thought I had last night as I made the trip back to High Point, was that a year from now, I could potentially be going on job interviews and preparing for the next chapter in my story.  Yes, I'll hopefully be wrapping up my dissertation study and writing the actual dissertation at this point next summer, but I could very well be interviewing all across the country for where my next job will be.  While, I would ideally LOVE to return to PA, realistically, I will have to go where the job is.  I admit that the thought of packing and moving to somehwere totally new, while exciting, is a bit daunting since I do want to so badly return home, or within a 3 hour radius of the tri-state area.  ;)  I just can't imagine how disappointing it would be to only return home once a year or so, rather than a couple times a year as I'm able to currently manage to do should I move even further away, like to Montana or California, for example.  There is no use in worrying about it now and this should make me even more appreciative of the fleeting moments I have with loved ones at home than I am now! 

I will try to 100% trust in His timing, rely on His promises, wait for His answers, believe in His miracles, rejoice in His goodness, and relax in His presence as the bookmark states by "Coming near to God and He will come near to you" ~ James 4:8.  These words are helpful to hone in on and ponder...especially when I may experience disappointments at things not happening when I would like for them to (i.e., getting together with treasured friends/family members, dating someone I am interested in, wrapping up a project, etc.) as everything DOES happen for a reason, even if I can't understand the logic or dislike the feelings that accompany said event. 

If nothing else, I do have one little guy in my corner who always wants to be and is, usually with me....my little furball Dusty Shamrock!  =)