The Place I'm Meant to Be

I believe that everyone has a place they are meant to be. My place came to me through a series of events that more than one person has told me had the hand of God all over it. When I tell the story of how I landed in Portland, people are amazed at how precisely it all worked out. Just like the pieces of some huge puzzle. I've told that story a couple times while visiting my home town over the last couple of weeks. Mostly because I haven't seen many of my friends from high school in years and years. So the story goes like this: As I have mentioned before, I have never been keen about flying. Ten years ago I was getting ready to fly to China to adopt my daughter Kathryn. I had been working on conquering this fear of flying. I had a couple good friends who were retired flight attendants, and they suggested taking a practice flight, where I could practice some of the techniques to help me be more comfortable. I had a friend who lived in Portland, so I decided that would be a good place to fly off to. I had never been to the Pacific NW and thought it would be a fun trip. I took the trip and on the way home I sat next to a nurse who was close friends with a gal who worked in Surgery at the hospital where I work now. She said the nursing shortage had hit this hospital really hard and that they were looking for nurses. I was looking for a new place to live and work. She gave me her friend' s numbers. When I got home that night I tossed and turned and decided to call her friend the next morning. By the end of the day I had a plane ticket back, and an interview for the very next Thursday. I didn't tell anyone what I was doing, and I returned to Portland. With a new navy blue suit and my nursing portfolio I showed up at my interview. The lady who interviewed me was so impressed, she hired me on the spot. So eight weeks later, I said good bye to the east coast and watched all my things get loaded onto a moving van and on March 17, 2001 I landed in Portland in the Great State of Oregon. I still work at Legacy Good Samaritan Hospital and Medical Center. I traveled to China that August and brought my beautiful daughter home to Oregon. September 11th happened about 2 weeks after I returned from China. I was in Delaware with my daughter so the family could meet her, and we were able to get back to Portland as soon as the planes were flying again. Yet another sign that Portland was the place I was meant to be. I love my life there. It hasn't always been easy being so far away from my family, but I feel like I'm a stronger person because I forged on ahead. I have a great group of friends who are very supportive and have become like a family to Kaysie and I. I do not deny that God's hand was in all of this. It was like a gentle nudge to stick it out. I love traveling to Delaware to visit family and friends, and my daughter loves coming as well. It is usually a welcome treat to visit. We enjoy our time but are always happy to arrive in Portland. We'll take the rain and all the bridges, and all the quirky little things that make me say, " it's good to be home." Thank you to all my friends and family for our wonderful time together this visit. Many memories and re-connections were made and we will be so excited to come back again as soon as we can! Cheers!