Eric, Levi and I have been living in Brownsville, TX for the past 10 months of our lives. Isaac was born here and has been living here for the past six month or his whole life :) When we first arrived here I had a few thoughts, one, how soon can we leave and two, we probably won't be here more than a couple months. Well we were definitely here a lot longer than I expected but in the end I'm very glad that we were and in many ways I'm sad to leave- something I never thought I would ever say. I'm thankful for the friends I've made and I'm so thankful for all that I've learned while being here.
A brief summary of our time here in hindsight:
We arrived at the beginning of October from Naples, FL where we had lived the past two months as part of Eric's job with Chick-fil-A. The city seemed small but acceptable. I was 6mo pregnant with Isaac. We moved into the Residence Inn, it was small but we did have two bedrooms. It was weird to spend the holidays away from family and in a hotel. We did go to an employees house for Thanksgiving and the hotel made us stockings for Christmas but overall it was lacking because our family was back home. As Isaac's birth approached the hotel threw a baby shower for me and I've never felt more cared for by strangers. There were at least 30 people at the shower and I only knew about 5 of there names at that point. It was so sweet and humbling. It was a nice break to be with adults :) Besides little perks like that I was starting to really dislike Brownsville. I had already been hospitalized for dehydration once due to food poisoning (and would later get it three more times but without hospitalization), nothing was familiar, grocery shopping felt overwhelming, there was a lack of green and my family was too far away!
But then, right before Isaac was born I found a MOPS group. I had yet to make any friends until this point, mostly because I couldn't find any. I really had tried but it seemed impossible to find anyone Anglo or not, I was willing to learn Spanish at this point, I just wanted a friend. I always feel a little awkward when I first met people but entering into a group of moms and having two moms who were both about to give birth to their second child sitting at my table was amazing! Even more incredible was having those moms take my number and invite me to hang out. I know, it seems normal, but to me it was so so wonderful! I hadn't been able to do that for over three months. In getting to know these moms I started to enjoy Brownsville more- grocery shopping didn't get easier, and the terrain didn't become greener but I finally found people! haha. When we first arrived wasn't sure if it was worth it to try and find friends. I just didn't feel like explaining my temporary slightly abnormal situation, I didn't want to have to later say goodbye and I was somewhat content to keep one foot in Florida while living in Texas. I realize now the value in diving in more so than I have before. Yes, the water may be cold but the sooner you jump in the sooner you will enjoy it! As we start to pack up and move to Myrtle Beach, SC I hope that I won't be scared and just dip my toe waiting until we can leave. I wish I would have dove in sooner in Texas!
Another step that Eric and I took was to join a small group at the church we had been attending- another way of diving into the community that we might soon leave. I do not regret it! I will truly miss all the friends we have made here! The way that people have shared their lives with us here has been a gift from God. I have been encouraged and challenged beyond my imagination. Thank you to everyone in Brownsville for enriching our lives so much!
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