Living Near Water

One of the huge perks of our new house is that we live within walking distance to the Scioto River. As in, half a mile at most. If anyone knows me well, they know it has been my dream for so many years to live by the ocean. And not the typical hot, beach-y ocean but a cooler coastal scene, like Oregon, Washington, or northern California on the west coast, Vancouver in Canada, or Maine or Vermont on the east. I feel at home near the water, where it's misty, foggy, mellow and just perfectly chill, and have for as long as I can remember. So the fact that we were able to find such a wonderful home so close to a body of water in central Ohio is a blessing.

Growing up in the country, I was fortunate to have daily access to the Earth in a myriad of forms; our home sat sandwiched between two woods that was full of life.  Near the back of our property ran a little stream, and I remember gravitating to that corner of our piece of Earth.  I would sit on a stone or a tree trunk and simply listen to the sound of the water and watch how it flowed. I noticed how the rest of nature interacted with the water, and how the water responded to the rest of nature. It was an unforgettable space where I could just be.

Since Andy was recently accepted into a Ph.D. program at Ohio State here in Columbus, we'll be here for at least the next five or so years. I'm incredibly grateful for this opportunity for him to advance his education in such an honorable way, and am happy to be growing roots here with our family. I understand fully that we may stay here indefinitely, and I trust in the plan God has for our family, which for now means central Ohio. Luckily, Ohio has its own beauty, and we are fortunate to live close to a river that can provide an excellent environment for our children to play, learn, and be, for our family to spend time hanging out and watching the sunsets, and quench that thirst of mine to be close to a body of water.

Last Friday, the boys and I spent a little time down by the river.  Nate now asks to visit the river daily!