The Not So Hard Decision

A question that people love to ask me is “how did you make the decision to move?” While I understand the sentiment behind it, as moving across the country alone at 17 is no small feat, it’s hard to articulate how simple a decision it was. Once I realized it was a viable option, it felt like there was no other choice. I had waited what felt like my whole life for an opportunity like this one, and though I knew the decision would be life altering, I couldn’t imagine passing it by, wondering forever if I had missed out on the experience of a lifetime.

Although the decision process was a quick one, (for me, at least, my parents may share a different story) there was still a lot to sort out before I would be ready to make the move. Where would I stay? How would I get from place to place? What would my training look like, and how could we afford it? This in-between time, as I refer to it, was one of the strangest times of my life. Leaving my job, telling my friends and family, packing my belongings and preparing to leave my childhood home with no idea what was in store for me on the other side was not an easy thing to do. Not to mention the fact I had exactly 12 days from the time I made the choice to the day my plane to Calgary left.

Those days leading up to leaving were full of many countdowns, lots of superstition and many racing thoughts. Although I knew my time in my hometown was very limited, I was afraid to imagine what waited for me in the new chapter I was about to enter. I was worried that, somehow, by imagining it I would be dissatisfied with the real thing, or that I would “jinx” it and something would go wrong to prevent the move. I have to say, four tiring but incredible month later, that I had nothing at all to worry about.