One Year Ago : “The Start”

On this date one year ago, my life changed.  A lot. 

 

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Sunday, April 4th, 2010

Once this post is published it will no longer be true, but currently I am aboard Continental flight 1545 destined for Houston (a city I once boldly envisioned myself living), connecting to my final destination: Orange County Airport, sunny CA.

Being a blubbering, emotional baby about mostly everything, including but obviously not limited to sweet elderly couples and sad animals, I surprisingly maintained my composure throughout all of my farewells.

Until this afternoon.

Even last night I was able to harness my faux-motherly sentiments to a single tear while driving away from my parents’, with Chico watching from the family room window. (he’ll join me and all of his mexi-relatives mid-May once things get somewhat settled)

So as B drove me to the airport, every sad goodbye-ing country song played on the radio (naturally), and I (naturally) welled up at the thought of a month and a half without him or my precious pooch.

As a courtesy to the security staff at Cleveland Hopkins (and a small fear of homeland security) I removed my beat up aviators while passing through the check point. Please believe me they promptly returned to my face in a futile attempt at covering my puffy and bloodshot eyes while I drug my massive amount of carry on luggage through the terminal.

And they remained there as I sat solemnly at the gate reading my paperback, plugged in to the Michael Buble Pandora station (sadistic, I know) on my Blackberry.

And while I washed my hands, because I did NOT need visual evidence of my tattered state reflecting back from the restroom mirror.

They were removed only briefly to place my draught order w the bartender at Great Lakes Brewing Co, which was conveniently located right across from my gate, and which shown to me as an illuminated oasis (thank goodness for the UV protection), singing angelic hallelujas to sway me from my forelorn state and into the open arms of a Wright Brothers Pilsner and the Cavs/Celtics game. One last Cleveland brew it was. For old times sake.

Sunglasses seemed slightly excessive inside the cabin, especially since I was in an aisle seat (mandatory), so my makeup-free and visible-capillary’ed face shown itself true to all other CO1545 passengers and flight crew.

If only I’d thought to make a nametag with “my fiance just dropped me off for a one-way flight to the other side of the country and won’t be joining me for SEVEN WEEKS” I’m sure everyone would have understood…

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Everyday I’m reminded that making the move from our comfortable and happy lives in Ohio to this foreign world (SoCal) comes with consequences.  There are risks, but with them come mighty rewards.  We knew it wouldn’t always be easy, and I’ll tell you it certainly HASN’T been.  We’ve struggled and we’ve questioned, but at the end of every day we know that we made the right decision.

Over the past year I’ve grown as a person, a friend, a runner, a professional.  I’ve let go of relationships that weren’t strong enough to stand the distance, and have seen the others flourish inthe most satisfying way.  While it’s hard to believethat “distance makes the heart grow fonder“, it’s true that distance is a valid test for the staying-power of those hearts.  The ones worth working for will last a lifetime.

I’ve learned what and who matter most in my life – something I’d seen in the gray for so many years suddenly became so black and white through all of this.

If nothing else, at the end of this journey, I’ll be thankful for that.

Sarah Soon-To-Be