Colorado

Almost exactly six years ago to the day I drove most of my things from College Station to Killeen where Austin was living. He was having his house packed up by the movers and we were trying to squeeze my stuff in there so that it could be moved for free. I was packing my bags and I was moving to Colorado. I think it is safe to say that moving here was probably the boldest, least thought out decision I’ve ever made – and it was absolutely the best decision I’ve ever made.

When Austin asked me to move with him I contemplated saying no. I thought maybe I should stay in Texas where I’d for sure have a job. I remember sitting in Brittany’s office over Christmas break my senior year and she just looked at me like I was an idiot. “But you love Austin.” “yes, but I have a job here”. “Yes, but you love Austin.” “Yes, but I don’t know anyone there, I don’t have any source of income, I have no money as it is…” “Yes. But you love Austin. You have to go.”

So, I went. I listened to my heart and ignored my brain and I went. Had I stayed in Houston maybe…well, there’s no point in playing out what may have happened. I wouldn’t have the family I have now, and my life would not be as rich as it is now.

Other than my fear of never finding a job and being broke forever, it was an easy move. I had to move one way or the other – I couldn’t afford to be a student anymore! So, why not Colorado? Why not one of the most beautiful states in our country? Why not live near the mountains? Why not?

And I fell in love. I still fall in love. I love most things about Colorado and I will miss almost all of it. I don’t think I could have had a better first home-away-from-home. The par was set high that’s for sure. But, there are a lot of things that I’ve learned in 6 years that I just never knew about Colorado. So I thought it’d be fun, and quite nostalgic of me, to look back at some of the things I’ve learned.

• When people boast about 360 days of sunshine per year, they really mean that the sun will make an appearance on 360 days. It does not mean that you would truly qualify all of those days as “sunny”.
• “Rainstorm” means there’s a slight possibility that you may catch a few drops of rain between the hours of 2:00-6:00. I don’t think I’ve ever used an umbrella and I’ve probably been rained on fewer times than the number of fingers I have. There’s no falling asleep to rain pounding on your window, but the trade off is waking up to a white blanket of snow covering your lawn.
• People don’t smile at you when you’re walking around the park. Or hiking trails. Or mountains. Or really much of any time. Now, that’s a very bold statement to say being that it’s a safe bet that 25% of Colorado inhabitants are originally from Texas…but people just aren’t nearly as friendly here as I would have thought they’d be. With 360 days of sunshine how could you not be friendly???
• Coloradans hate Texans. Some hate Texans a lot. I was told at my first job “The best thing about the Colorado river is that if you pee in it, you’re really peeing on either Texas or California because that’s where it ends up”. Well, glad to meet you too! Oh, and they hate Californians too.
• If the brand isn’t North Face, the brand isn’t worth the time of 75% of the people that live here. Burberry? Louis Vuitton? Any other brand you may know? Nah, just hand over the North Face.
• Denver has the longest snow season of any city in the United States. (proven fact) We don’t have near the quantity of snow as other places, but snow season typically starts in October and can go all the way to Memorial Day. Last year it did! That means it snowed more months out of the year than it didn’t. That can turn almost any snow lover into a snow hater. Just not me.
• I had no idea what “weird” was when I used to think Austin (the city, not my husband) was weird. People here eat grains and nuts and don’t shave their armpits and ride their bikes across the city to work and drive Subaru’s…
• Parking spaces are not meant for trucks. Maybe it’s their passive aggressive way of trying to eliminate all of the Texans? Well, I showed them. I know how to park in 2 spots.
• People have secret sources of income. I don’t know this as a fact – truly it must be secret – but I believe this to be the case because from about February until October on any given day you can find hundreds of people out riding bikes. Dressed in full biker garb, riding through the hills and into the mountains and through parks along roadways…just riding. I had hoped that before leaving CO I could find out where these people work, but alas I’m headed out the door and its still a mystery.
• Broncos fans are the worst. Rockies fans are loyal to a fault. And I haven’t really met any Nuggets fans.

As silly as some of my ah-ha moments have been, I have learned one very good lesson that I will carry with me:

**You can meet some of the most incredible friends in some of the most unexpected places. **

In high school I thought North Dakota was just a big square on a map…and a place where we should send our prisoners. What I didn’t know was that I would meet three of my best friends who grew up in that well kept secret they call NoDak.

For all the days I cried about unemployment, and then for all the nights I complained endlessly about my job at Janus, I am eternally grateful for where God placed me when I took that leap of faith and moved to Colorado. Kaila and I started work around the same time which then allowed me to meet Jodi and Dusti. Had I stayed in Texas for a year or so to work and save money, which was my alternative plan, I wouldn’t have had the opportunity to bump into Kaila at just the right time…3 girls new to the big city, as desperate for friends as I was.

Over the last six years my three north Dakotan friends have come to feel as much like home as my real home does. I never would have guessed I’d ever meet friends away from home who make me feel the way these three do, and it just happened out of the blue. And it’s not just the blessing of these three; I’ve had other friends that have popped up unexpectedly. I’ve been amazed at the relationships that have come up in the most unexpected places.

My heart breaks at the thought of not seeing them– regardless of how little we see each other now – and I am not prepared to walk away from such wonderful friends. But the silver lining here is that if I met three of the best friends I’ve ever had when I fully expected to never have more than an acquaintance, what are the chances it’ll happen again? What are the chances that God has something amazing planned for our lives in California and that we are going at just the right time?

“I am the Lord, the God of mankind. Is anything too hard for me?” ~Jeremiah 32:27

I have faith He will do it again. In a few years I will come up with a silly list of lessons learned from life in California but the true gift will have been the people I will have met.