The As-I-Amber Podcast & Blog

I moved away from my hometown in Columbus, Georgia for a job in South Carolina back in August of 2019. Then BOOM THE PANDEMIC! If you would have told me that a global pandemic would happen and that by the end of 2020 I would actually be back in my hometown due to the office closing due to remote work and then becoming a caregiver for my Dad I probably would not have believed ya!

There is nothing like having an opportunity, getting out of your comfort zone, and moving to a different city with No close friends or family there. Whew Chile! It’s been an emotional journey. These past 4 years have shown me how to stop relying on myself so much and to rely on God more, and trust His plan and not my own.

Starting a new job position in the middle of August 2019 and having to quickly find a nice affordable apartment in a more expensive city AND moving all within a two-week time span, to meeting new people, making new friends, and adjusting to life in a new city and state, then moving back has been a lot. On top of all this back in October of 2019 I was in a car accident that totaled my car. I was fortunate enough to walk away without any physical trauma, and I was able to quickly get another vehicle. Praise God!

I feel like I’ve gotten a little bit closer to God and am becoming an even stronger person that is blossoming into more.

Sometimes it takes going elsewhere to really see what you’re capable of. It makes you more appreciative of certain things that “home” offers like never having to use a GPS device or always having somebody nearby if an emergency happens and oddly you see who really is your “friend” when you are away in a different phase of life. I also see how certain people are your friends for reasons, seasons, and life times.

Thank God for technology like text messages and video chat apps like iPhone’s FaceTime and the “old school” phone call. Sometimes living in a different city is a fresh start for better and more opportunities and a new chapter in the book of life for lots of people. I’ve never been afraid to explore or go on adventures, but it’s a difference between visiting a place for a short time for a vacation versus living there.

Some already have their groups and cliques in smaller cities and if you’re new or have a different mindset or life it can be a challenge to fit. Some take the cost of living or having a village for granted though. Having a network of people or connections are vital, especially in smaller cities where its more so who you know and not what you know.

Years ago I went to college in-state at Fort Valley State University, which is only an hour away from my hometown. While I was a senior in college I studied abroad through a scholarship award in various Italian cities. After graduating from undergrad I’ve traveled to different U.S. cities and European cities and not speak the language, but to up and leave everything I know to go elsewhere has been exciting, scary, lonely, and fulfilling all at once. Living in a smaller city like Columbus, GA all my life things were in my comfort zone.

I am NOT bashing my hometown or the people there because it’s helped in shaping who I am and who I am becoming, but consider that sometimes certain cities lack certain industries or scenes for people of certain age brackets, and more or better opportunities for better salaries or different mindsets exist elsewhere.

Of course, if all you do is go home and to work and never do any activities outside of that or try to go places or participate in things or make the place better or do things that interest you then ANY city you’re in will be boring or easy to complain about.

There are pros and cons to anything in life, and so many creative, talented, smart individuals from smaller cities and towns leave because they may feel limited or want better for themselves or maybe they’re tired of running into the same people they had middle school math with at the grocery store or the same people or cliques running things and doing the same things all the time.

You get my drift. Overall moving was beneficial for me and I would recommend anyone whoever has a good opportunity to go! I know it’s scary, but life is so much bigger than your town and you can always visit or even move back like I did.

So many people live in regret, but you only get one life. Never forget or be ashamed of where you come from and as The Notorious B.I.G. said: “Stay far from timid, only make moves when your heart’s in it and live the phrase sky’s the limit.”