Growing Pains

I have outgrown my current environment.

There was a time when I craved small-town life. Indeed, I have flourished in this sleepy, sometimes slow-to-progress South Louisiana barely-a-city.

When I first moved here 12 years ago from Houston, the slower pace and less crowded streets were a welcome change. I found quickly that it was easy to immerse myself into the community. The people were welcoming and as curious about me as I was about them.

I became involved in the local theatre and was instrumental in reorganizing the local humane society and making it a productive and essential part of the parish again. Because of my passion for the latter, I found myself in front of the parish council pleading for improvements to the shelter and encouraging them to initiate new procedures.

Soon, strangers started recognizing me. Whether they had seen me in a play or at a humane society event or on the local tv station following a televised parish council meeting, I was slowly obtaining a certain local notoreity.

As an attention-hound, I loved it. I stayed busy, was proud of the non-profit work I was doing, had fun with the theatre and met a lot of really great people.

But, as Robert Frost once said, "nothing gold can stay." (sorry, I've watched "The Outsiders" a few too many times, I guess). Things change and so do people. I switched careers, my married life fell apart, changed partners and responsibilities, drifted away from the Humane Society due to differences of opinions and haven't had much time for the theatre.

I guess, more than anything, I'm tired of being a big fish in a small pond. I know I can make a difference here. It's easy drawing a small community together. It's satisfying, but no longer challenging.

Compare my growing pains, if you will, to moulting in a bird. It's time for me to shed a few feathers and replace them with something new; to pluck the used and broken plumage and grow stronger, better wings.

I'd like to see what kind of waves I could make in a bigger city. Plans are in the works to move on. Stay tuned...