Friday, July 1, 2011

not what i had planned.

in the months leading up to graduation, i had the same conversation with countless people. it starts with the question, "so, what are your plans after graduation?" and ends with me rambling and sputtering and trying to put together a cohesive answer and typically, failing. i planned to get a job right away, then i planned to apply to be an invisible children roadie. i submitted the application, had one phone interview, and decided i didn't want to do that any more. i planned to volunteer while i looked for a job. then i won tickets to bonnaroo from lelia broussard the day before the festival opened. i planned a ride there with my kate. an hour away, the car broke down and we ended up riding to the festival with an angel of a tow truck driver, JB. the next four days refreshed me, amazed me, and reconnected me to what makes my life so incredible. i could write a whole post about bonnaroo itself but it would include way more feelings and eminem references than anyone would want to read. suffice to say it was just what i needed. we planned to rent a car on the way home. that didn't work. we planned to ride to the beach in north carolina, then we planned to stop in raleigh. we eventually got home, and the night i arrived in brooklyn, my mom fell down her steps and broke her leg in three places. i'd planned on hitting the job hunt hard in new york upon my arrival back, but that plan changed as i left again, this time to my mom's house to take care of her while she recuperates. i've been here for two weeks now, and will be heading home on thursday, if everything goes according to plan. i'll be moving in with a friend in manhattan on august 15, i'll be applying for more jobs and getting hired as soon as i can... if all goes according to plan. but one thing i've learned over the past month is that sometimes absolutely nothing goes according to the plan. more importantly, i've learned that when those plans change, something even better can happen. you can find yourself unexpectedly headed to tennessee to have the time of your life. you can meet an aspiring singer-songwriter at a hotel bar in raleigh, north carolina. you can be amazed by the generosity of strangers-turned-friends. you can make memories to last a lifetime with your best friend. you can be there for your mom when she needs you, and make her laugh when she's hurting. plans change for a reason. so, i'm staying open to the next change in plans, because it's coming whether i want it to or not. i'm even looking forward to it. it's kind of exciting... how's this plan going to change so something better can come through?