Conclusions

They say that all things must come to an end. Sometimes, an ending is just what we have been waiting for; but other times, an ending brings only sadness and painful goodbyes. On the whole, the end of my time in Kentucky follows the latter.

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I have been having some health problems. I started having muscle spasms that would last (off and on) for hours - something the doctors couldn't explain. I went to see a neurologist and they ordered a round of tests, but still there are no answers other than the catchall of "maybe it is stress" (as if I haven't been more stressed at other times of my life?) or a sleeping disorder. Personally, I am not really buying either guess, but thankfully the spasms have subsided for now.

In some ways these spasms marred my ending in Kentucky. My last two weeks were spent going back and forth to the doctor/hospital/specialists - and when I wasn't in Lexington doing that, I was at home. In a strange way it felt a little how I imagined life would have been in the dorms if you didn't have class. Because of Shannon's odd work schedule, I got to see her on a lot of different days and we had a fun little LOTR party as a result. When everyone came home from work I got to hear how their days went, along with any other recent news. I got to do some baking (which is generally a stress reliever for me). And, perhaps best of all, I got to spend a lot of quality time with Allen (who was absolutely wonderful - he put off his trip home so he could be my nurse and chauffeur me to all of my various appointments). So there were some blessings out of these spasms too.

Last Saturday I left Kentucky. The goodbyes were, of course, the hardest. Both Jenny and Jenna made me cry as I hugged them each for the last time (I probably would have cried with Shannon too, but she came in at 6:30am to say her goodbye and I was a little out of it). My empty room looked quite desolate and it was odd to walk away from the Rockcastle House knowing that it was not my home any longer.

Thankfully, the last few days have brought a little more peace with that transition. I had a wonderful trip to Texas (and I didn't even melt in the heat!) and was briefly in Seattle before heading to Leavenworth for time with family. I still don't know what lies ahead for me; it looks like I may be in Portland this fall, but we'll see. For now I am looking forward to my cousin's wedding, Allen's visit to Oregon, being back in the Northwest, and spending some time with family and friends.

I definitely left a piece of my heart in the hills of Kentucky with a wonderful group of people whom I will miss dearly. But, for now, this seems to be the end of my Kentucky story.

Blessings.