[The street in front of our old Sunday Morning Spot, taken in Roanoke, May 2011.]

Currently, there are several empty corners in my apartment.

The space where a coffee table used to be. The old home of a lamp. An empty bookshelf in the corner of the office.

There was a time in my life when these empty spaces would have been a cause of anxiety and sadness. Now I look at them with joy and see how full of hope they really are. As I pack things slowly into boxes and send furniture away, I am simplifying my life.

There's something very attractive to me about doing things that aren't easy. Maybe it's the runner in me.

Go the distance. Throw things away. Make life better.

I remember a very specific moment from when Rob and I were leaving Roanoke to move here for the year. I was emptying the refrigerator in an apartment that no longer held any of our things. A broom sat, propped against another empty corner and dust covered the floor of what used to be our living room. The muggy August heat of southwest Virginia crept through the old warehouse windows of the apartment, and in that empty space, Rob pushed the hair from my sticky neck and said "I love you." That apartment wasn't empty as long as we were in it.

I have learned that an empty corner is just the beginning of something new and better.

On Friday afternoon, I ventured to Longwood to meet with my thesis advisor and then spent a few hours hanging out with my brother while he set up for his band to play a show later that night. It was warm and sunny and so good to see him.

Back in Charlottesville, it's cloudy and cold, but yesterday my mom came to visit for the night along with my childhood friend Patrick's mother, and we spent the evening eating and drinking and laughing. Rob has been super busy with end of the semester work, and it was so good to not spend the afternoon alone at the computer again for a change. My mom and I packed some things up after lunch and coffee, then reunited with Patrick, his mom, and his fiance for a nice dinner at one of our favorite places.

Who doesn't love spending time with great people? It's been a good few days.

[A jade plant, for luck, at my friend Tina's house, taken March 2012.]

I quit my job today.

Not in a "see you never, I'm leaving" sort of way, but I gave my notice. On May fifteenth I'll be closing the book on my coffee shop career. It has served me well, to be a barista while I was a student, but I'll not be a student for much longer, and it's time for something else. 

This summer is going to bring a lot of changes.

I'm moving back to the lake. Rob is going to China, then to live and work in northern Virginia for seven months. I am so proud of him for landing a great job that he's excited about. I am so excited to one day feel what it's like to be excited about a career. I feel lucky to be able to say that in all the uncertainty that clouds my future, he is one thing that I can always be sure of. So I'm going to live with my parents while he starts this new job.

Until then, I'm not sure what my plan is. I haven't found a job for myself in Roanoke, yet, but I feel good about it. I'm really learning to let go and trust in the universe/God's plan for me. There's really only so much you can do so far in advance. I know that there will be writing. There will be time with my family. There will be food. There will be love. 

And then, a permanent home together; time for me to finally start a career of my own; somewhere to put down roots. These are the things that await us.

I can wait another year.