We moved to Milwaukee, WI, about three months ago and it’s felt both like it was just yesterday we were in Virginia, AND like we’ve been here for awhile. But within these three months, we’ve learned some valuable lessons from being away from everything we’ve known.
Lesson #1
You’ve got each other and there’s power in that.
When the opportunity arose that we could potentially move away from the place where we grew up, (Northern Virginia), some people we talked to about it said “Do it, it’ll be great for your relationship.” Which so far, has been true, praise the Lord 🙌. Without as many distractions here in Milwaukee, we are able to focus on ourselves and our relationship with one another. It forces us in a way to think beyond the usual things that we end up doing like watching TV together, eating out, going to the movies/mall, etc. We’ve had more conversations about our dreams, hobbies we want to pick up and our future together and that has felt good.
Lesson #2
You’ve got to find things to fill up your time.
We remember complaining about how little time we had for each other, let alone our own hobbies some weeks back home. There were times where it would be work, work, work during the week and family, family, family. It was good because it kept us busy and we were spending time with our families and friends, but it did kind of suck to not be able to do the things we wanted when we wanted because of our other commitments and responsibilities. Now, we actually find ourselves needing to fill our time with things to do (mostly on the weekends, of course). Its allowed us to explore Milwaukee more and develop some new passions.
Lesson #3
Appreciate the people who are in your life even though they are away.
When you do get to see your loved ones, it feels really special. We no longer take those moments for granted. We want every moment with our families and friends to be fun and exciting. It has also become a chance to create new memories with them. Meeting up in a different city, discovering new places together. We still haven’t been back to Virginia yet, but when we finally make a trip down there, we are looking forward to seeing everyone and really taking those moments in.
Lesson #4
You’ve got to put in effort with relationships.
We’re finding that we suck at staying in touch with people and we need to get better at it like ASAP. We have it in our minds that ok we need to call our loved ones every now and then, but then we get busy with something and forget. We really just got to get in the flow of picking up the phone and calling. It’s not like before when you see each other in person at least once a week. There’s actual effort that needs to be put in. Sorry, guys! We love you! We promise to get better at this!
Lesson #5
We don’t really know anyone and we need to make friends.
In the first couple months, we would both look at each other and realize “wow, it’s really just us.” We can’t drive ten minutes to visit our parents. We can’t call up our cousins and friends for last-minute hangouts. We can’t really ask anyone for help with anything and we can’t really help our families and friends being so far away. But that’s made us realize that we need to make friends and get to know the community here.
So these are just some of the things we’ve learned. Overall, we feel grateful for this experience to live in Milwaukee. Who knows where life will take us next 😉