Sometimes, nostalgia slaps you in the face.
Stopping for gas in Redding after a long drive on a summer’s evening, I took in the sights, the smells, the heat. It hit me like a wave: unexpected and hard. Missing all things familiar, feeling homesick for it. Craving simpler times, when smaller problems had easier answers, when bad days had good friends waiting on the other end just a few miles away…
And even though it feels like it isn’t okay, I know in my heart that it is. I know that growing roots takes time, and I know that my 6+ years in Redding created deep soul ties that weren’t severed just because I moved away.
Keeping relationships up-to-date is harder, intentionality becomes necessary. But this is what fosters growth in the deep places, the heart and soul. This is what produces character.
But as I type this, my heart aches. And I’m still okay. I’m breathing. I’m moving forward. I am headed home.
My Thoughts Observed 