Christmastide 2008 Night #6...

Well it is the officially the Fifth Day of Christmas...although, unfortunately I did not have the pleasure of waking up to five golden rings waiting for me!

No, today consisted mostly of searching out a second job and a new roommate. For you see, tomorrow on the Sixth Day of Christmas my work buddy and former roommate, Jeffrey and his lovely fiance will be wed. This leaves me now with a 2 bedroom, 2 bath condo that I cannot afford on my current salary...well, I mean I am paid up through January already but I have no money to my name because of that. Turns out my lease doesn't end like I thought it did...apparently in the fine print it says you must give 60 days notice before the lease is up otherwise it automatically renews itself. Which is probably a good thing since I am getting denied housing left and right all over town here. So, today I re-posted some ads with some roommate services and whatnot online as well as applied for a couple more evening customer service positions. Overall, not really an exciting day.

I did keep up my new tradition however by watching movie #9 of Christmastide 2008: The Nightmare Before Christmas. What an amazing feat of a film...from concept to finished product. True it isn't a story that would pop out to you as a Christmas tale on the first pitch of the idea...but it is a great story.

A story of staying true to yourself and who you are and meant to be. It is also a story of being content in the very place you are...the lessons of this story are exactly what I have been struggling with the most. I sometimes fail to appreciate where I currently am in life: physically, emotionally, spiritually, etc, because I want more. However, by always wanting more or something else...I lose the ability to fully appreciate today and right now.

I am not going to lie, in almost a year I have still yet to adjust to the place I am now. Most days I would give anything to go back to Bend, go back to my old church, my old friends, and my old job. Hey, sure I wasn't always happy in that place, but it sure felt a lot happier there. But a part of me also knows that were I to leave this place and go somewhere else I would probably be looking back saying I wish I was back here for some reason. Although at this present moment I am not sure what that reason would be.

I just have to continue to trust God that there is a reason why He has me here now...a reason I may never know and must be okay with...and while I want more out of life and relationships with others, like a previous times in my life...I must remind myself...just like Jack the Pumpkin King...I must find ways to be content in the place I am in and not seek out some mythical "better place, somewhere out there"

First step...enjoy each day I am given to its fullest potential no matter where I am at. And tomorrow I plan on fully enjoying being present for Jeff and Alli's nuptials...oh, and rumor has it Alli's best friend has been living in Portland, Oregon this past year so if nothing else I will have someone from the PNW to talk to tomorrow, guaranteed!