Hi, it's me again! It's been a long 10 years since I've updated this blog, but I think I might try to pick this up again.
In the 10 years, we've had a second child, picked up and moved cross country, and started a second (or is it third?) career as an administrative officer/accounting/finance/HR.
We have had a blast exploring this region of the country that I never really knew existed. I thought there wasn't much past NYC. Boy, was I wrong!
My first trip to Boston was on a 1-week consulting assignment, which turned into 2, in February of 2009. There was a lot of snow on the ground and freezing cold, as you would expect. However, I was about 3 months pregnant (really? I remember being quite large for being only 3 months!), and didn't want to take any risks by flying more than I absolutely had to. So, when I found out my assignment was extended by a week, I decided to stay in Boston for the weekend and explore. I booked a room at the Westin downtown and literally walked down Newbury through the Gardens to the North End and back! After a day, I was convinced this is where I would want to live, if ever I had to choose another city to move to.
My second trip to Boston was in October 2011. By this time, #2 had come along. My husband had an AAP conference in Boston, which he thought would be boring for us to tag along to. So, I stayed home to hold down the fort and host house church. As soon as he got to the conference, he realized that the AAP conference might be the most family-friendly conference ever, especially with all the newborn and toddler samples, everything from diaper rash cream and sunblock to snacks and formula, NoseFreidas and sunblock galore! So he booked us all tickets to fly out to Boston the next morning! Thankfully, I had lots of points stored up and could pack a suitcase in 20 minutes. So, armed with a suitcase and a diaper bag, one child in the stroller and the other one strapped to my chest, I boarded the plane and took off! Kids were champs! I needed a little help getting through Boston subways - thankfully, there were people who stopped to help me carry my stroller up all those stairs - but we eventually made it to the hotel and conference center! After that, every other travel was a piece of cake!
Fast forward to May 2013, we were vacationing in Australia. We were celebrating our 10 year anniversary and Caleb's 2nd birthday (his last trip as a free lap child). We were having a blast and living life "off the grid." The last few days of the trip was in Tasmania, where there was very poor cell reception. We finally arrive back in town and Suny started checking his email. Lo and behold, he had an email from a pioneer in the field of palliative care who asked him if he might consider coming to Boston and joining the team here! My mind drifted back to the days of aimlessly wandering the cobblestone streets of Boston, discovering nooks and crannies of things of old. Oh, we were filled with so much excitement! We left Australia dreaming about what life would look like in Boston.
We came back home, Suny flew to Boston to interview, and I started researching where we might live. Long story short, it didn't seem to make much financial sense to move. We would leave family, church, a place that we called home and started our family. So, we initially thought to turn down the offer. However, we prayed about it, and we felt that God was calling us out of our comfort zone so that we can learn what it means to depend on him and to be a salt and light in this part of the country. This was confirmed by our pastor, much to our surprise. "Everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life." (Matthew 19:29) So, out of obedience to what we felt like God had put in our hearts, and to fulfill my dream of leaving Houston and living in a walking, urban city (God knew the desires of my heart), we moved to Boston in March of 2014.
Here in Boston, God really stripped us of all the things that we kept ourselves occupied with, things that were mostly distractions from truly getting to know Him! We were left by ourselves, or so we thought. But we are never alone, because He is always with us. I never thought we'd be able to own a home here - and yet, God provided us with one by the end of the year. We never thought we'd find a church here, but God led us to the perfect church for us. I can't believe we've been here for 6 years already, and yet it still feels like we just got here.
Through the 6 years, we've made some really good friends, and we've also had to say good-bye to many of these friends. I have some thoughts about this, but for now, I'm going to end this post by saying, I am going to cherish the people who come in and out of my life, and wish them well on their journey. I hope our paths may cross again, but each one of them has taught me so much about life, about myself, about my faith. I never would have had this chance had I stayed in my "safe" and comfortable bubble. Some days, I do want to give us and just move back home to TX, but when I seek God and ask him why we're here, he reminds me of the reason that he brought us to Boston. And then I become so thankful all over again. It is still hard, but nothing about a life pursuing Jesus was supposed to be easy. It is supposed to be joyful, in the midst of the struggles. And I can truly say that I am joyful, even if I'm not happy all the time. :D
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