Macro Risks

I quit my hospital  job, terminated my apartment lease, and started looking for someone to buy my car.  I identified the missing documents for my Spain visa petition.   It felt like a daydream  in the middle of a terrible work day.  But I was 17 months into forming this plan, and 11 months into making the life changes to pursue it.

Before the hospital job, I was a live-in mentor to high school seniors.  The 2020-2021 school year was the height of Covid and the circumstances were horrendous.  My mental health vanished, and I was sprinting toward depressed self-sabotage or an emotionless stone-hearted existence.  I finished the school year, helped with summer programming, and left the school behind me.  

I took an awesome trip to Spain.  Exploring the small towns and woods for 30 days and living 40 days in Madrid.  I hiked a substantial chunk of the Camino Primitivo.  I ate octopus.  I slept in bunkhouses.  I studied under spiritual mentors.  I looked for God.  I fished off the coast of Spain.  60 days into the journey, I started a dating relationship that would turn into a powerful love. When I left the country to return to Pennsylvania, I started preparing to work in and reside in Spain.  I took a Pennsylvania  hospital job for 6 months to pay the bills while I found a job offer in the public schools of Spain.  The consulate of Spain is processing my work visa as I write this article.  I made a security deposit on an apartment rental in Spain and I intend to move in next month.

Some key factors made my radical changes possible.  I had perspective.  I sensed that obeying God in this time of my life included changing my hometown and changing my work hours so that I could attempt to find social  health.  I had womb-to-tomb supporters.  My family resisted my plans to change countries, but I knew they would do whatever I needed to keep me from homelessness.  I had resources.  I had spent 4 years earning the best salary of my life.  I had experience.  I had been to Spain 3 times before I decided to move there.

Sometimes micro changes are not enough.  Sometimes we must take great risks.  It may be to follow specific guidance from God.  It may be to reverse an unhealthy course.  It may be just the opportunity to pursue something excellent.  When the time comes to act, we must gather our courage and jump.