First Impressions of Charlotte

Growing up in a small town in Kentucky, my heart will always love the small town, country feel.  But I just have to say, there is something awesome and fun about living downtown in a major city.    Plano was great, but it was mostly giant houses in gigantic neighborhoods.  Now our view is high-rises and skyscrapers.  We are on the fourth floor of a nine floor apartment building.  It is so strange to me to ride an elevator to our "house." It's like living in a hotel with long hallways and doors on both sides.  We have to use our key fob to get in and out of the parking deck and on and off the elevator.  Another nice thing about our place is that we have not heard a single neighbor except those walking outside our door.  No TVs, no movies, no music, no vacuuming, no foot noise, nothing.  This patio is getting a lot of use for eating breakfast, reading, and updating the blog.  I'm really loving our new digs.  

The EpiCenter is about a ten minute walk, and we have made the trip several times for dinner and to check out what's going on downtown.  We can see the Carolina Panthers Stadium from right outside the apartment building.  With the weather so nice this time of year, there are always people out and about.  Lots of people running even if it's 90 degrees, lots of business men and women walking to work, and some homeless people.

I don't see myself settling down in the city, but for this season of life, I am loving this busy, walk everywhere, use the elevator to get home lifestyle.

David is working at the Chick-fil-A in the Eastridge Mall in Gastonia, which is about 30 minutes away from our apartment.  The store is well staffed, so there is not much for me to do.  I'm going to have to find other ways to spend my time here in Charlotte.  While part of me thinks it would be awesome to just exercise, lay by the pool, and read, I want to do something useful and meaningful.   We are not sure how long we will be here, so it is hard to plan.  I'll keep everyone posted if any doors open up.

Grateful

I heard it said in a sermon recently "There is nothing more annoying than an ungrateful child." (The sermon about prayer is here, and it's awesome! You should listen to it!) This statement has seriously had me thinking recently.  I don't want to be ungrateful for everything God has given to me. The big stuff as well as the daily and mundane stuff. And to shake my world a little more, I've come to know some of the people at the Willow Bend Mall Chick-fil-A in Plano.

I had the preveledge of working with two awesome ladies from Iran. One lady was married and had two children by the age of sixteen. And that is just the tip of an iceberg of her hard life. The other waited 12 years to finally get a visa to come to the United States with her husband and two daughters.  12 YEARS! She left her parents, siblings, and nieces, who she loves very much, to have a better future for her daughters. Her husband left an engineering job in Iran for a minimum paying job here. It just blows my mind to leave a family, language, culture and comfort to come to the United States for a better future.  I am thankful for so much in my life, but I take so much for granted! I'm learning to be thankful for every meal, for leftovers, and for the air conditioner on a hot day.  

I am also thankful for Chick-fil-A and this opportunity to travel, to work, and to meet new people. I'm excited to announce that David and I have moved back to the east coast. David is managing a store in the Eastridge Mall in Gastonia, NC. We are living in downtown Charlotte, but there will be more details about that later.  It's pretty awesome!!