Like a good percentage of the population in Minnesota, I didn’t love snow or cold when I was growing up here. In fact, I disliked it so much that I spent many years trying to find a place that lacked winter, but still felt like home—a semester in France, a year in Southeast Asia, a few years in both Santa Barbara, and New Orleans. While these places were beautiful, interesting, novel, I never felt an affinity to living in anywhere other than Minnesota. In 2010, I made peace with winter and moved back to Minneapolis.
Despite the stress and discombobulation they can bring, holidays, especially those in winter, naturally lend themselves to reflection. Perhaps it’s because between Thanksgiving, Hanukah, Christmas, and New Year’s, we celebrate two to three holidays within a five-week time frame; perhaps it’s due to the overtones of religion and appreciation. The holidays are especially poignant for me because they represent something I forewent for several years: family, friendship, and togetherness.
2014 Highlights, from top left: Ringing in the year in New Orleans; Lake Superior Ice Caves under blue skies; completing my 6th half marathon in Chicago with bestie, Mic; maple syrup yield from 25 gallons of sap; celebrating 20th high school reunion with friends; niecey's track & field day; a week canoeing in Quetico with friend Ryan; toasting my first home sale with Sharlene; honoring Dr. Richard Bohr on the occasion of his retirement on the same day that, 16 years earlier, I'd arrived in China to teach for a year in Guangdong Province.
As 2015 begins, I’m thankful for the beautiful normalness of my day-to-day life (which, like for everyone, is not terribly normal); I’m thankful for my lovely friends who are so close that I can go to happy hour with them; I’m thankful for my kooky, nutty family, and being able to spend Christmas afternoon watching movies with my niece on the couch; I’m thankful to have the opportunity to work with Sharlene and John and to help clients in every stage of life.
Last year was amazing… Here’s to an even more amazing 2015!
Angela Anderson, Realtor, Results Support Services: EMAIL — BIO
Licensed Associate Working with Sharlene Hensrud of RE/MAX Results, and HomesMSP — Sharlene, John, Angela
RELATED:
-
Can Snow (or Frozen Lakes, at Least) Make us Happier?
-
Lake of the Isles: in the Middle of Everything, but Feels Miles Away from it All
-
Location, Location...two sides to the story
