The first time I moved I was too young to really remember. I was born in Cleveland, Ohio and my family moved to Dayton, Ohio a year or so after I was born. So despite being born in Cleveland, Dayton has always felt like my true home. I really like VA Beach, but since this was my second out of state move and with me now being much older for it to impact me, I'm not completely sure how to deal with some of these feelings.
When I'm not busy working, I get plenty of time to stop and think and it often hits me "Wow, I'm really living my life somewhere other than Dayton." I've said it before and I'll say it again. Making this move was not an easy thing for me. I guess some people deal with these things better than others, but speaking from my own personal experience, when you live one place most of your life and then you go somewhere else, that takes some time to get used to, much more time than I originally thought.
More than anything, I feel like an outsider. I walk down streets I've been down so many times now and go to stores I've been in over and over again and I still feel like an alien. I don't feel like this all the time, but it just bugs me that I that way at all and I can't wait for this feeling to go away. There have been times where I've run into people that know that I'm not originally from VA Beach. I'm not sure if it's from the sound of my voice (no, I don't have an accent or anything), or I'm just that transparent that people can tell right away.
Without saying too much about my job, I will say that I work with some terrific people and they were among the first friends that I made when I moved. Like the people I knew and worked with in Ohio, they are becoming like extended family to me. Yeah, that might make me sound like a clingy, emotional idiot, but one of the main things I learned in church is that family isn't all blood related.
Lately, I have been missing my friends, my extended family in Ohio a lot. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about them. So if any of you happen to be reading this post, know that you're in my thoughts and that I miss and love you.
Before this post sounds too overly negative, let me say that I do really enjoy living in VA Beach. It's a wonderful city. I get to see my nieces and nephew, father, sister, and brother-in-law, I make far more money than what I did in Ohio, and I've met some more great people. I guess it'll just take more time before I truly feel like I've adjusted to this new life.
Comments