When my fiance first told me that we would be moving to Tulsa, Oklahoma, I was sad.
I mean I was really, really sad. Like... stay in bed with the blinds drawn watching Sex and the City marathons kind of sad.
I'd spent so much time building the early stages of my life in Washington- it is here in DC that I always felt like I belonged. I have a group of wonderful friends, a budding career, a sense of purpose... a place in this world.
I decided to move out here on my own back in the summer of 2010. I never could quite explain it, but I longed to be here- I wanted to get lost in the lovely chaos of politics and cherry blossoms and history. A relatively recent graduate, I didn't have a job, and I didn't know anyone save a cousin who worked on the Hill. I took a job at a small PR firm that only paid a couple of bucks an hour, and rode the metro close to an hour each way to get there. I took a part-time job manning the front desk at an upscale salon to help with costs of living. In my very first Craigslist experience, I found a room for rent in the most perfect Woodley Park house, with three fun-loving, 20-something single girls. I wasn't scared to make that move, because DC was the place that I wanted to be. My life was completely different in a matter of weeks.
And I loved it.
Now, a big change is about to happen again. I'm quitting my job and searching for a new one. I'm leaving my quaint one-bedroom apartment and we're buying a house. And, I'm planning a wedding for October. Some mornings when I lay awake in bed, I start to think about all of the things that are happening, and all of the things that I have to do... I close my eyes and envision myself free falling into empty space.
Some time has passed since I first found out, and I have been able to better process my thoughts and organize some plans. I am still sad to leave, and a little bit nervous.. I don't yet know what to expect from a city like Tulsa.
But, if my past life experiences have taught me anything, it is that the fear of the unknown quickly dissolves away once plans start to be made, and gradually, things begin to fall into place.
