Wanderlust?

There is a big, strong guy who lives in one of the apartments above my office.  His girlfriend has agreed to let me borrow him for the day on Saturday to help me move… and he has driven a U-Haul before.  So no worries boys and girls, you are safe to travel the roads of Florence this weekend. 

For the first time in my life, I think I have wanderlust.

I came to Florence when I was 18 to go to college, and I have never really considered living anywhere outside of this area since then.  I love this town and I love the people.  I love my friends and I love the familiarity of it all.

But when I woke up this morning, I was so angry that I was here and not somewhere else.

Maybe I am just weirded out by the fact that for the first time in 7 years, I have complete and uninhibited freedom?  Of course I have my job and a few other obligations, but I can do what I want to do pretty much whenever I want to do it.

I can’t help but wonder about what else is out there.

One of my brothers has been in Italy for four years and is moving to Hawaii at the beginning of next year.  My other brother recently moved from upstate New York to a beach front condo in Ft. Pierce, Florida.  They’re living these awesome lives and seeing and experiencing so many things.  I never thought that I would have the option to just pick up and move away and start completely fresh.  And I was okay with that.

But things changed. 

Even though I poured every ounce of my everything into keeping it from happening, things changed.

Last night one of my friends quoted an old school Foo Fighters song to me.

It’s times like these you learn to live again.

I’m not sure that any words have ever hit closer to home. 

It’s so, so scary.

But I think I’m ready to live again. 

Really live.

I’m not positive what my next step is going to be.  I am currently looking at which states accept an Alabama teaching license and which areas of those states are in the most desperate need for teachers.  I think that's a good start, right?

This is such a weird feeling.  But I know that I have to get away from here.  Somehow, someway.  I need to get away.

And you know what?  I’m going to figure out a way to do just that.

(P.S.  I love you, Alyssa. So much.  And I’m so glad that you are amazing enough to be able to quote a Foo Fighters song that was released when you were 12… ha.)