Noah

"You got a sandwich....from Jeff's Pizza?" 

Six weeks ago, I was riding a bus home that I normally wouldn't be riding, and on that bus, I met a guy that I otherwise wouldn't have sat next to. I was on campus eating dinner with a girl from my sorority and he was coming back from the career fair. The small details are what make this story- to me anyway. Five minutes earlier and I would have caught the right bus, and I would have passed by this guy and probably never have known him. On a campus of 32,000 people it still amazes me that I can recognize faces of people that I don't know the names of, and probably never will, but I can sit next to one person on a random bus and be completely changed. In the five minutes that we had on that bus ride, Noah and I joked about pizza and chatted about our majors. Before he got off at his stop, he reached into his bag and pulled out a business card that he had been using at the career fair. "You should give me a call sometime," he said with a sweet smile and then he disappeared. I have since learned that he was pretty nervous making that move and he didn't expect to hear from me at all. I'm so glad I proved him wrong.

Noah is a senior in Electrical Engineering with a year left to go. He is from Roseville, Minnesota which is very close to the Twin Cities. He has a younger brother, Jonah, and he used to swim competitively. Recently he got a really amazing co-op with a company in St. Joseph, Missouri which is where he'll be spending six months starting in January. Noah likes to cook and experiment with things, trying to figure out how they work. He is also the optimal height for hugs and hand holding and he is the perfect mix of muscle and teddy bear- though he doesn't quite appreciate that description.

On our first date, we made mozzarella cheese together. Yep, that's right. Pretty adorable right? On our second date, we went star gazing for 2 hours. Recently, I volunteered with him and a club that he's president of. Next week, he's going to prom with me- that'll be another post I'm sure.

It's amazing to me how much can happen and change in a month and half.

Noah is a gift, a blessing. There's not a doubt in my mind. When I'm with him, I feel content. I don't feel guilty or apprehensive. He listens to me and he is genuine with his words. He is willing to wait for me, and that's amazing. For 12 months I've been on a hard, dark, lonely path and in the last six weeks I have made some major life decisions that have shown me a light at the end of the tunnel for the first time in so long. I have withdrawn from Iowa State for the remainder of the semester and I might take all of Spring semester off. I am working almost full time at HyVee and I am working on sorting out career options for myself. I want to be happy with my life, and if that means not going back to school, I need to know what it does mean. I had to go early alum with Phi Beta Chi, and while I love my sisters to no end, it's been so nice to have a little breathing room. I started a Bible study with Abby and for the first time in so long I can almost see how all of this will work towards making me a better woman. I started dating Noah, and I'm so happy with him. Really, actually happy.

All of these choices, they have been weights lifted from my shoulders. It's almost surreal; I have felt real happiness in these last few weeks and it's been so long since I've felt this way that I almost don't even know what to do with myself. Here's what I do know though:
I do know that the choices I am making are good ones.
I do know that I like Noah and that he likes me.
I do know that the way he talks makes me think he wants this to last, and I do too.

I do know that I'm joyful, and that is something worth holding on to.