Good things come to those who wait

Its hard for me to type that title, but its true.  At least it has been for me anyway.  This past weekend, I got the chance to hang out with a group of friends that I didn't plan on making.  One of them, who had recently moved to NYC expressed her surprise that Nick and I haven't gotten another dog yet. Nick's stance on this subject is "Hell no".  Mine is, well if it happens, it happens.

Thinking of this made me think of an observation that Nick made the other day.  We were searching for something - a  mission of some sort - and I found that something something that I liked-mission accomplished-but was refusing to believe that I was able to find that exact something that I was looking for, but with little to no effort.  It sort of just happened.  Yes, whatever it was we were searching for was very inconsequential, but it was symbolic of how our lives have been thus far.  Which is where the observation comes into play, as it defines how we've found each other, found our careers, our house, our dog and some of our friends.

Starting with our relationship in general.  Nick and I were the two people in our groups of friends that were always single, without prospects.  That sounds pathetic, and I assure you that its not the case.  We still had fun, enjoyed college, met and dated people, but hadn't found OUR PERSON, yet.  Next, we begin chatting online (yeah seriously, internet dating) and become friends.  Very close friends, but not the romantic kind.  Last weekend, however, Nick made a confession.  He claims that he said it once before, but he said that as soon as he saw my picture, that very first time, before we were even entertaining the notion that we'd be more than our screen names for each other, that I was "marriage material".  Something about my picture triggered that in him.  Kind of a big deal for a 21 year old college student.

Fast forward about a year and all of the sudden, we were now "Nick and Linda".  Fast forward a few years later and he's working in Zanesville, I'm working in Columbus and we're talking marriage.  Three years ago this past Sunday, January 18, he asked me to marry him.  He said that he was ring shopping and found the one that he just knew was meant to be mine.  It wasn't a long, drawn out search, it was just it.  Our wedding was much the same way.  We did little leg work, we just seemed to find the right places, things and venues that were just, us.  Just ask any of our friends if they were surprised when the Dreamland Express rolled up to take them to the church and you'll probably understand.

Back to the dog conversation.  Chino was the same type of phenomenon.  We were not dog shopping, we weren't even looking.  Nick's aunt was looking and successfully found and adopted two puppies.  Since she was such a proud dog mom, she sent out pictures along with photos of the rest of the litter - desperately looking for homes.  Of course, I wanted to go look at them, and of course we fell in love with two of the little male pups.  I had it in my head that a fun dog name would be "Neato Pachino...Cap, Frap and Al Pa"...Chino for short.  So Nick and I crouched down, the two male pups facing us and called for Chino.  The little yellow fur ball came right to us, and we were hooked.  We both knew that it was a bad idea (it was the July before I graduated with my Master's and I was working on a paper.  We were also in the thick of wedding planning).  Knowing nothing about puppies, except that they were cute and fuzzy, we took on the challenge.  Chino quickly shattered our "rainbows and sunshine" attitude, but he balanced his diabolo antics with lots and lots of laughter.  Again, we stick by the story that he found us - and he was meant to be our dog, since we were able to take everything that he dished out and remain hopelessly in love with him at the end of the day.

Rewind again to our weekend with a new group of friends.  These friends used to be just co-workers, but have turned into so much more.  It was something I wasn't expecting when I found my job.  I was expecting a career change and a chance to try something new.  I wasn't expecting the atmosphere and the energy that I found in the people that I work with.  I wasn't expecting to have as much in common with them as I do, let alone wanting to hang out with them OUTSIDE OF THE OFFICE.  I'm very grateful for this group and for the fun and energy that they add to my life.  They make my 8-10 hours per day, more than a job, and make me feel very fortunate.

They are a part of what I've come to realize as my (our) path.  Going after what I want, showing initiative is vital, but so is letting things happen as they happen.  When I sit back and relax, the best things seem to come to me, strengthening my relationships, enriching my experiences and connecting the dots.