For most people, a wedding day and
a honeymoon week are days, times, experiences, and memories-made that will
never be forgotten. For me, I became lucky enough to not only marry the world’s
most wonderful man, have a beautiful wedding day, a wonderful honeymoon, and
memories made to last an entire lifetime; but I also got to be gifted with the
stark reality of “real life” on the very day our official “honeymoon” was over,
so much that I was literally in need of a fresh, new start(er).
Allow me to explain.
Jeff and I enjoyed quite the
wonderful week, following our impeccably- smooth-going wedding day, of official
honeymooning in the quiet, nature-esque area known as Stone Mountain, Georgia.
Very quickly, Jeff and I became very fond of the quiet and secluded
characteristics of our resort (so much that Jeff made a song of it… another
story, another time), yet we also enjoyed its proximity to the not-so-quiet,
“the-world-is-coming-to-Atlanta”ness within a short notice’s driving distance.
We quickly made ourselves at home, as we took advantage of all the niceties and
perks that Atlanta had to offer us on pretty much every day we honeymooned
there. Though the actual wedding day felt like a blur, the honeymoon week we
shared was absolutely perfect and seemingly endless.
On the very first full day we
arrived back in town in Lynchburg from our honeymoon, I began feeling very sick
and soon realized that the regular (and irregular) mishaps of everyday life
didn’t stop because Jeff and I were now married; rather, they were simply nice
enough to pause while we honeymooned. Attempting to make a quick trip to Bed,
Bath, and Beyond and Target that day to finish off buying some items from our
left-up registry, Jeff and I piled in the car – my lovely 2003 Toyota Corolla –
and headed on our way. No sooner had we finished our quick shopping trip than
my car decided to stop working. Literally. Would. Not. Start. [Oh, and I failed
to mention it was HOT that day. And yes, remember, I was feeling quite sick.]
A few Target icees, a wasted hour
of our sweet married life, and an $80 towing truck bill later, Jeff and I found
ourselves in the sweet air conditioning of our
little-newlywed-apartment-suited-just-for-two. And we found ourselves grateful
to have each other to go throughout all of life’s messes with–
Fast forward.
I got over my feelings of sickness,
as one often does, and returned to the daily necessities and duties of my
everyday life. It quickly became apparent that my little Corolla was in a
ridiculous need of a new starter. Once in the shop for a new starter, we also
acknowledged the need for a variety of services the Corolla was due for and
decided to splurge upon rising to the occasion to fix them all in one fell
swoop.
That’s when the little writer-voice
inside of me starting thinking (and typing).
My car didn’t just stop and sit
dead on me one day out of nowhere. It gave me warning signs along the way. Some
went undetected, for sure. Others, ignored. And still some, “yeah I’ll get
around to checking that out.” But on that dreadful day in the Target parking
lot, nothing budged. Literally.
Once we acknowledged the need for a
new start(er), the unveilings and remembrances of other “fixes” came to mind,
were clearly exposed, and were properly fixed.
This rude awakening and
introduction to married life via broken-down-car-madness made me wonder, “Is
there anything else, any area of my life, in need of a serious fresh, new
start?” Maybe an old friendship that could be revived. Perhaps a new skill or
job to be pursued. A fresh perspective and attitude with which to approach my
little corner of the world, possibly. Extra time with God not merely to “make
sense of it all,” but to simply let all marinate into my mind what He’s done by
grace and what He’s up to next, right around the corner, of this dear, sweet
life I get to have and enjoy having, moment by moment, day by day.
Because of my silly story, I wonder
the same about you. Is there some evidence in your life that something is in
need of a fresh, new start? Maybe it’s something you haven’t even had the time
or energy to notice yet, but it’s there. Not in the back of your mind yet, but
lingering in the background scenes of your life. Maybe it’s something you’ve
been ignoring, saying, “Yeah, yeah, yeah, I’ll get around to doing that later.”
But later never comes; and apathy, busyness, and/or misery become a three-fold
tribe of your new dearest friends.
Wherever you find yourself in this
journey today, at the very least entertain the answers to these questions to
determine what you can do to gain a fresh start in specific areas of your life.
If not, I can already hear the sounds of a tow truck about an hour’s distance
away. And who knows what that’ll end up costing you...
