on being right where you belong
#BeHereNow
My first plane ride was to sunny Los Angeles, California. It was the summer of 98’. I had recently graduated from 8th grade and celebrated my 14th birthday. The ticket to California from Chicago was a graduation present from my father. I boarded a Frontier plane with an older cousin, her husband and children. My cousins the same age as myself had flown out a few days before us and were frantically awaiting my arrival. I had no idea what to expect in Cali, but I didn’t expect to become enchanted with the golden state.
even the hood is pretty.
I wasn’t prepared for the intoxicating beauty of California. These Chicago eyes saw palm trees and mountains for the first time. From Beverly Hills to Compton, I saw multiple worlds based in one city, and it was all beautiful. Even the hood was pretty, because how could it not be with palm trees and sunny skies? I fell in love and a few days before it was time to fly home I called my mother and asked if I could stay and live in California with my aunt and cousin. I told her I had $200 spending money left to sustain me. She told me to get my butt on the plane when it was time and come home. Against my will, I returned home to Chicago, but I would never forget the way California made me feel.
ATL, shawty
I wanted to live in Cali, until I visited Atlanta. My mom and I had taken a trip there in anticipation of me going to Clark Atlanta University after being accepted. The AUC (Atlanta University Center) was like something out of a movie. Black excellence everywhere you looked. The entire city felt like an episode of ‘A Different World’, and I knew I’d perfectly fit in. But when it was time to pay my registration fee, my family didn’t have the $600 and my CAU/ATL dream was cut short.
over there > here
I believe people should be exposed to different cities, cultures, and ways of life, as much as possible - especially children. There’s a big world out there and God forbid I never get the chance to frolic through lavender fields in France. Or sail the Amalfi Coast. Or dance on the beach in Ghana at 4 a.m. However, if I’m not careful, I can constantly be in a state of wanting to be “over there”, instead of “being here”.
be here now
I’m at the age where I can now move freely throughout the country. We can move to California and especially Atlanta (some of my family, including my mother, relocated to the ATL area last year) if we wanted to. It would take hard work to uproot our lives, but we could do it. However, I’m also at the age where I realize years of wanting to be “over there”, has snatched away my ability to see the blessing in being “here”. “Here” is not only referring to the city I live in. It also encompasses the job I work, the church I attend and this season of my life. Maybe being “here” is right where I belong.
God knows where I’m supposed to be and just maybe he’s had me right where I belong.
Your Favorite Cousin,
Nik
I felt/feel the same about Los Angeles. My first trip there was the month I turned 29. I wanted to move there. I still do at 50. I love the energy. I did, however, move to Atlanta in 2020, right after the stay-at-home order was lifted in Virginia. Hated it. And it could've been a combo of the area and the timing. I don't want to be unfair so I may return for a visit in the near future. I agree that we should be exposed to different cities, countries, cultures. Something changes within me each time I'm planted inside a new environment outside of my own, whether that's a new dwelling or a new town. Admittedly, I haven't traveled outside of the states, yet, with the exception of Tijuana during that same initial Los Angeles trip. I'm currently in rural Virginia and I know this isn't where I belong. I came back once I left Atlanta. But nothing clicks or sticks and I'm not evolving. I very well think I've entered a season to leap somewhere so that I can grow again. I'm loving these new posts!