Following a Star

Where to begin after almost a one year lapse in writing! Since there is one 'big' announcement, I suppose that is as good a place as any to start, and I'll work backwards from there. So the news is....I'm moving to Detroit. On the eve of another birthday, I'm starting to reflect on what is behind and what is ahead. This coming year I will take this big leap on the heels of a different leap, runaway marie. Although I never ended up writing chapter upon chapter about my journeys, my heart indeed ventured on a story of grand scale. Looking back on almost a year and a half of traveling, somewhere around 31 trips I stopped counting. But what I do recall is that on July 13th, after returning from Canada and about to board another airplane, I fell in love. For friends who have heard the story, it is rather amusing. The usual response being, "You went to LA, Miami, New York, London, Oslo, Montreal, and you fell in love with Detroit?!!" Yes it's true. I went tumbling head over heels as my life as I knew it in Atlanta went tumbling. Somewhere along the road I started believing that maybe there is a God in heaven who loves us so immensely that He not only wants to give us the whole enchilada in life, but dessert on top of it. I apologize to those of you who have had to hear me repeat this mantra a billion times, but I think that it's true. And is been such a wild ride to grab hold of these little intuitions and hang onto them for dear life having faith that I'm weaving myself into a larger unseen story, and not simply crazy. So when not four weeks after I set foot in Detroit I'm deciding to close my business after things have finally reached an impass with my neglectful landlord, I was clinging to this belief with white knuckles. At the start of September, after deciding to lay down the business and my ego, I announced to my staff that I was closing the doors. And then to my utmost surprise, six hours later my manager had an offer on the table to buy me out. Six months later she has tripled the staff, moved to a perfect location, and she has truly taken the business to the next level. Returning back to the moment, in one week I will embark on a three month sabbatical to rest, reflect, and refocus before establishing residency in Detroit. My original plan was to open another business upon arrival, but after much contemplation, I acknowledged that I just erased the whole chalkboard and I don't want to rewrite the same thing. So in an attempt to have a more circular versus linear career path, I've decided to take the things I've learned and give them back. In August I will take up a 9 to 5 teaching position, but not before some adventures through Reykjavik, Oslo, Bergen, Stockholm, Minneapolis, Chicago, and to be continued. I will also be in Atlanta for three weeks of summer, so it's not 'goodbye' yet! Just trying to stay present through the transition, acknowledging the end of one fabulous season, and the beginning of a season still clouded with shadows. As with any change this enormous, it seems I'm experiencing a new emotion each minute. Fear, excitement, sadness, anticipation, gratitude. I have no idea where this next path will lead, but it feels like I'm following a star and it will guide me to just the right place. And if I've learned anything through this runaway marie blog, it's that neither time nor distance diminish true friendship. I'm so thankful to be going from loving arms in one city to loving arms in another. So cheers to saying it again and again...the whole enchilada plus dessert!