Hey y'all! Abby Grimaldi here. & no, "y'all" isn't a staple in my vocabulary. Haha! My husband & I are fresh from his 3rd pro hockey season. We spent the majority of it in San Antonio, where we enjoyed games at the AT&T center, Texican food, The Alamo, & being taller than many of our new Texan friends (a rare treat!) Did you know that North Dakota boasts the tallest average height? Must be the tall German genes... My LifeTime Fitness friends thought I was a sky-show! GOOD TIMES. :D
Anyway, after the wedding in July we moved from LA to Denver to Texas, & now back to NoDak! Is moving exhausting? YES. Does packing up get old? YES. Have my driving skills improved? I think so...? I spent the first 22 years of my life in a town of about 60,000. Big for ND, small for the rest of the world. If I didn't know someone, my mom or dad did. I had connections everywhere, & everyone was a friend. You don't know how nice running into 10 friends at Target is until you're across the county with no one to recognize! Except for this one time...I ran into my junior year English student teacher at a Target in Texas...WHAT ARE THE ODDS? It was so exciting I think I hugged her twice. (Yes, I am 95% extroverted.) Moving around to unfamiliar cities as a complete stranger can be hard...but it also doesn't have to be. This being my 1st season with Rocco, I don't think of myself as a seasoned hockey wife yet...but I sure have learned a lot this year. Below is my number one takeaway for you .......... .......... If you are lucky enough to completely escape your comfort zone & live a life of unfamiliarity/uncertainty, count your blessings! You guys...I mean it. I think sometimes people become so infatuated with planning their lives, following those plans to a tee & never straying from them that they lose the raw joy of living in uncertainty under God's direction. I'm not saying you should quit your job & cut off every tie in your life. But I do think some of us need to give up the unsatiable craving for a perfectly stable, controlled, ideal life...mostly because it doesn't exist! The past 8 years, I was making my way through high school & college. Intensely driven & busy all. the. time...honing my skills as a musician, dancer, teacher, fitness instructor, pageant competitor, hockey girlfriend, worship leader, etc. I have no regrets regarding all of the things I balanced. But I will tell you something significant about this past year: I had more free time than ever before & I GREW more in my faith than ever before too. Hmmm... I don't believe the two always correlate perfectly, considering how bored & off-track I would sometimes feel in my college summers. BUT. If that free time can be filled purposefully, you can really grow. really pray. really read. really serve. really live. In college I wouldn't always take the time to give people a conversation in the checkout lane. This year, I did. I had more time, but I was also a little lonely. I figured, maybe this person feels kind of isolated too - better give them a minute of kind words just in case! You never know who you're reaching & how far your reach extends! When you're in an unfamiliar place & your husband is gone for 2 weeks, you get creative! I had some great friends from the team, church & work, & I tried to put a little extra into those relationships...15 more minutes at church connecting with people is fuel for you more than who you're talking to most of the time! I've noticed two things now that the season's done & I'm back where I started in ND for the summer... 1. I am a new person spiritually. - I've grown in ways I never dreamt, & I'm really happily married in a Christ-centered marriage. I am much better at coping with ups & downs, & I have a clearer picture of my calling. I've found new aspects of myself because my new surroundings have required a stronger me. I've been molded by a new mold - simply by being taken from my comfort zone. I am a stronger, more seasoned version of myself. 2. I am the same person who moved away the day after her wedding. - Singles ladies & gents, don't think that marriage will transform you into a perfect new human! A strong marriage is forged when a man & woman of true seasoned (imperfect) faith come together in commitment to God & themselves. Marrying a professional athlete hasn't changed the way I view myself or those around me, just like it didn't change who I was when we started dating. I am confident in my values & the image God has given me. Satan's definitely tried to shake me this year in a variety of ways & I haven't always been a perfect warrior, but I've learned to fight for my faith like never before. (Really really cool.) I noticed that being in new surroundings had a magical way of confirming my Christian values & beliefs. Were we always surrounded by like-minded people this year? No. Were we constantly making new connections & solidifying our identity in Christ by getting out into the world." YES. 100 times yes. A sheltered life usually isn't a very dynamic one. My dream is to be honest & dynamic in ministry. I'm open as can be, but all this moving around gives me a story...& all dynamic stories get uncomfortable! I'll take it, God! As our first year of marriage unfolds, I continue to find myself in new scenarios & grow accordingly. I wrote some ridiculous new songs. With Holy Spirit passion & the kinds of rawness I've been waiting for. The anointing I beg God for. Being uncomfortable is so good for creativity. You can't always write a winner in a daisy patch. One night I wrote this awkwardly honest song. I had been struggling to trust God with my future. Rocco was on the road, so I sat down at my keyboard just shy of midnight & started playing. In 30 minutes, I was finishing the second verse. I choked up realizing that GOD WAS WRITING THIS SONG THROUGH ME...FOR ME. Like a musical sermon. I finished the song in 45 minutes flat & just kind of sat there freaked out over how near to me God was. How deeply He knew my need. I spent many days this season asking "Do you see me, God?" "What do You want me to be doing with my life?" That night, He wanted me to write the song "It's Not the End." & it was just for me. I've enjoyed seasons of life that were completely comfortable. They were great. But the crazy moments I've had in God's presence this year have been insane. & amazing. & completely worth the uncertainty. I just KNOW God is writing an exciting chapter in my story right now. I don't want to skip it. Friends who are uncomfortable right now: DON'T wish away this season. Just don't! 1. it doesn't work like that. & 2. Embrace it! You're already there: uncomfortable. For those of you lucky enough to be uncomfortable, remember the flocks of people wishing they could make a change in their life or have a fresh environment to thrive in. It's okay to not have your life mapped out. It's okay to be uncertain about your next move. It'a okay to be in an intense season of seeking with God. You are aggressively valuable to Him (so valuable that He died on a cross for you). HE SEES YOU. HE LOVES YOU. Draw near to Him & He WILL draw near to you! For those of you who made it through this whole post, CONGRATS! I appreciate you! As you've probably noticed, I am freshly passionate about the gift of living outside of comfortable. If this has spoken to you, let me know in the comments below! Pass this along to a friend in need! Find me on social media & let's connect! Lots of love, Abby Grimaldi (Christian Singer-Songwriter/hockey wife extraordinaire/mover-packer/Elsa impersonator/friend)
6 Comments
|
AuthorChristian Singer-Songwriter, Writer, Hockey Wife, & Fitness Fanatic. Nomad with North Dakota roots. Archives
January 2020
Categories
|