About seven months ago, my husband, Ron, and I decided it was time for a new adventure. Long story short, we sold our house and about 90% of our belongings, picked up and moved from Cleveland, Ohio to Orlando, Florida. We have been here for a little over a month, and already, we know this was a great decision.
Even though it was the right thing, there have been a few bumps – shit we never saw coming. It set us back, and, we experienced those questioning moments that come up when the chips are down.
Then, the kindness of a stranger jolted us back to reality.
When we moved here, Ron and I made a commitment that we would indeed go on new adventures every week. We have held to that commitment. There is so much to do here in Orlando, and our goal is to experience it all.
Last night, we attended a festival that took over part of downtown Orlando called Immerse. Artists of a variety of crafts took over the streets to perform or display their work. There was also art that took the form of kindness like the words BRAVE written in large letters that asked attendees to write their bravery on a post-it note.
Another exhibit was called “Dear Citizen O”. There was a wall that had clipboards and stationary with an envelope. Our job was to write an anonymous letter to a citizen of Orlando, and in turn, we would get a letter back. The instructions told us to “think of it as a pen pal, or a neighbor you always see, but have never talked to”. Both Ron and I eagerly took our clipboards and we wrote letters to people we have never met. Because of the anonymity, we signed our first names. We dropped them in the “mail box”, and then, we were told to pick a letter from a pile.
This is where the Universe took over. The letters we received are pictured in this post. We don’t know how, but, they were exactly what we needed to hear. Two special angels named Nuru and Destiny gave us the perfect gift. In fact, I’m tearing up as I type. Nuru reminded us that we are resilient and that no matter what we are going through, it will work out in the end. Destiny told us that we are special and that we are loved even if we don’t think this is the case.
We hope that the letters we wrote will bring the same kind of joy to the people who receive them. I’m writing this to remind anyone who is reading it that you matter. All of this reminds me that we have the power inside of us to choose how we focus our thoughts, how we act, and what we do every single day.
I’m so lucky and happy to be on an incredible adventure with my very best friend in the whole world. I just need to remember that the storms will roll in, but, the sun will always return.
Whom ever created the idea for Citizen O, thank you. Your activity made a difference in our lives and I hope we can pass it on. Thank you Nuru and Destiny for giving us the kick in the butt that we needed.
Be resilient my friends! You are loved.