The Tar Heel Transition

She arrived. After driving for ten hours down the highways, through the insane fog- that blocked the front of her car from her view, and the three stops she was forced to make, she had finally arrived in North Carolina. The air felt crisp and smelled like snow; it was mid-January. The trip took all day and she was exhausted. She grew up in the big city where you didn’t talk to anyone and, in mutual respect, they didn’t talk to you either. Sowhen the three random guys, with the box truck, started walking up her new driveway, she went into fight or flight.

“Hi, we’re with the moving company. Delivery from Pennsylvania, right?”

“Oh...” she thought, “they’re not murderers. Cool.”

“Yeah, she replied. Let me get the door.”

After twenty-seven years in the same state, and same area of towns, Maria was finally fulfilling a dream she had almost her entire life. She always had said that, she truly believed, she had been born in the wrong half of the country. Sure, Philly had lots of history, the best cheesesteaks ever, and water ice but, it also held everything bad, she ever experienced. Ex boyfriends, broken dreams, gravestones for almost every family member she was allowed to have. She was haunted daily, as she drove around: by her mistakes, failures, and memories; good and bad.

She couldn’t drive through town without being reminded of everything she had ever screwed up. Nor, could she stop thinking about her best friend; he was like a brother and had passed away several years prior. The voice in her head that she should of, or could of, done more and maybe changed history....it haunted her. Even when his parents told her they didn’t want her to feel that way. She smiled through the pain.

That’s how she survived anything: put on a happy face, keep energy high to maintain the secret, and smile like it's going out of style. This way, nobody ever knows how sad and lonely you feel. All of that died, with the old her, at the state line though. North Carolina was her second chance. It was a place she had never been before, had no job waiting, and found her home online sight unseen. Even better, not a single person knew who she was, or what she had done in her past. Sure, everyone back home thought she was insane for making this decision. She was never one to go with what people wanted her to do, or considered the right choice though, so, why start now. She had God and her cat. She needed nothing else...well, maybe some sleep since she arrived at ten o’clock at night.

Two hours later, everything she owned had been unloaded from the moving truck and into her new home. She ignored almost everything, but did manage to locate her toothbrush, toothpaste, and make her bed. “Good enough” she said to her orange cat, Louie. He jumped up on the end of the bed, curled up, and went to sleep as his response. Maria joined him and got into bed herself. As she closed her eyes, she felt lighter, like a giant rock had finally been lifted off of her. It felt good. She breathed easier, and nothing in her new season had even really happened, yet.

“What the heck is that!?” Maria said to her empty bedroom the next morning. Louie jumped up from his warm position at the bottom of her bed. “Meow” he replied. She grabbed her cell and checked the time. “Lord, have mercy, its 6:45am and I slept for six hours.

Cacadoooo!

She heard again, “oh, it's a rooster...wait...a rooster?! I am definitely not in Philly anymore, Louie” she said to her cat. Today was her first full day in the Carolina’s. The town of Culver had a population of two-thousand, four stoplights, zero Wawa stores, and Friday night lights wasn’t just a television show-it was a way of life. The first few days she decided to focus on getting unpacked. Her house, and the road outside, were as quiet as a mouse, so she blasted some music. Getting dressed for the day, with a cup of coffee now in hand, she stepped outside to breathe in the air. The temperature, despite being the winter still, was a warm ninety-one degrees. The sun was shining bright but there was no humidity. There was, however, the faint smell of a farm in the light breeze.

She headed back inside, sat at her computer, and sighed. Online job searching felt like a very daunting multitude of steps. She had put it off long enough though, today she was determined to get started. "The savings account will only last for so long" she said to Louie, who laid on the couch next to her. Instead of browsing over to job search sites, thoughts of Sunday crept into her mind and she surfed to the website for her new church, instead. She couldn’t wait for her first Sunday to arrive. That was the big day; the entire reason she packed her world and changed her life. She had moved here because God told her too. She knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that she was meant to take a chance, and do this crazy thing, because God needed her to be part of what was happening on campus at Summit Church.

She had been online with them for years, but to experience it all in real life, she had literally dreamed of that happening. Finally, it arrived! She drove to the campus nearest her home and was greeted by a multitude of smiling faces. She walked through the doors and felt welcomed, and wanted, in an instant. The bright colors of the painted walls shouted “fun,” and everyone seemed so kind. A gentleman, named George, walked up to her, “Is this your first time visiting us?” he said. “Yeah, it is.” she replied. Overwhelmed, but in a good way, she followed him, as he led her to the sanctuary. He pointed out the restrooms on the way as he asked her back story. Diane greeted them at the sanctuary doors and led her to a front row seat with a “RESERVED” sticker on it. “Wow, I feel important” she said to herself.

The next day, an email arrived requesting an interview. It was administrative, but not in real estate which was her real bread and butter. Still, she needed an income so she happily prepared. Printing off three copies of her resume, she hopped in the car and began the drive not knowing her close the company was. Her GPS spoke to her, over the music she blared, from her miracle car; a 2012 Kia Rio hatchback. She thought of it as a miracle because, in her mind, it was a miracle she had one. Maria’s family was not the “buy you a car because you turned 16” type of family. So, when her cousin sent a check, for a down payment, to help her out, she was floored. She felt crappy that she never did send a thank you note. It’s not that she didn’t want too, she had every intention, but her ADHD kept allowing her to forget despite taking the photos, getting the stamp, and addressing the envelope.

She arrived at the company, a Christian tour company that took people to everything from weekends in NYC with a Broadway show, to cruises departing from Miami, and day trips in the Appalachian Mountains. Upon her arrival, she realized she didn’t remember when her interview was scheduled for. “Crap” she said, out loud, as she frantically searched through her emails only to come up empty. After the disaster of an interview was over, she thought to herself “maybe I should have told her I just moved here three days ago? Ugh! Whatever, something will happen.”

Thirty minutes later, she was sitting on her couch again. As she popped a piece of popcorn into her mouth, her cell phone rang. "Whose this?" she said to Louie as she read the words, "unknown caller," on her screen. She realized that had an NC area code so she answered it.

“Hello”

“I’m looking to speak with Maria Caldwell,” the caller said.

“This is her.”

“Ms. Caldwell, my name is Janet Baker, and I’m with Riverside Realty. We received your application, and references, and would love to interview you. I know this is extremely short timing, but are you available today? Maria was flabbergasted, a same day interview was unheard of, but it was real estate and that really put the giddy-up in her footsteps. “Actually, I am available. What time?” she replied. Ten minutes later, address in hand, and fresh resume copies printed, she was out the door.

From the moment she arrived, she was taken aback by the beauty of the black iron accents and slate-grey walls. It had a modern touch, but felt so homey, at the same time. The interview lasted for an hour and now she was being given a tour. Janet stopped at an office and knocked on the door. A taller man, with brown hair and broad shoulders, who smelled like he just walked through flower garden, stepped out. Smiling at her, he put his hand out for her to shake. “This is Ryan Dubois. He, and his wife Stella, own this firm. Ryan, this is Maria Caldwell, I just interviewed her for the administrative position. I thought you may want to sit down for a few minutes also.” He looked at Janet, as if knowing, and said okay.

Clearly, some unspoken communication had just occurred, but of what, Maria didn’t know. He asked about how she found out about them, her previous experience, and her journey south, when she said she quit, to move to NC. “Wow, that’s quite an adventure. Folks who don’t just dream dreams, but also chase those dreams, and put the work in to achieve them, are who we want here. Welcome aboard, Ms. Caldwell.”

She shook his hand again, unable to control the giant smile growing across her face. Something about this place felt so right. She had the same feeling, at Summit, on Sunday. This was the beginning of a new chapter in her story, and she couldn’t wait to see how this rollercoaster ride continued.