New.

This past weekend marked probably the last time I'd be going up to Blacksburg to visit. It was an incredible time of laughter, reflection, and memories. Between seeing old friends and new, walking around the Drillfield, and doing the hokie pokie with the HokieBird, I'd say it was a good time. It reminded me just how powerful that community of Hokies and nlcf-ers really is, and how much I miss being a part of that community. But I also recognize, now more than ever, that this season of my life is coming to a close. I find myself having a harder time identifying with college life, as if that perspective is slowly changing.

As much of a defining season as the past five years have been for me, I sense God wanting to start something new in my life. It starts, I'm sure, with the new town I find myself in. New people surrounding me both at work and outside of it. New opportunities, new discussions, new perspectives. I haven't fully connected to a new community here but I know enough to keep searching. I realized this new-ness three months ago when I first came here, but the routine of working and the various trips I've taken for diverse reasons have somehow kept me from engaging in a new community. Tomorrow, as they say, is another day.

This past weekend I was able to laugh more than I thought possible, I was able to relax with old friends, I celebrated new life through the baptism of three children, and I was able to enjoy one of the greatest places on earth. I even got my picture with the HokieBird. But I also realized how fluid our lives become. We are always changing, always growing, always different from who we were a day ago. It's amazing how much growth I've experienced and seen in my friends over the past few years. I just need to remember to keep growing and keep seeking where God is leading me in this next adventure. For what it's worth, I keep reminding myself that God is making all things new.