And life changes before you have a moment to breathe...

Today was one of those days where your life is turned upside-down in an instant. I got a call from Kenny at around 11:45. He says, "Can you meet me on the Riverwalk downstairs...right now?" This is after I know that he received a cryptic email from his boss this morning asking whether he could "meet for a couple of minutes" at 9:30. Kenny assured me he had not been fired, but he did say "We need to talk." That was the longest 30 second elevator ride of my life. So we meet on the promenade, and Kenny tells me that, as of Friday, he is transferred to the Dallas office of his firm.
Let that sink in for a second. We have lived in Austin for 7 years. The longest place I ever lived is in Dallas, which was for 14 years. Atlanta follows behind Austin at 3.5 years. We have built a life here. We have bought a house. I, who usually kill plants, have established a garden in our backyard and invested $400 in said garden. I have recently survived the split of my law firm. I have helped build my new firm. I serve on two boards of directors here. I have built an established network of contacts in the Austin legal community. I have cried twice today at the thought of leaving Austin. I am sad. 3 of my 6 closest friends live in Austin.
Dallas will be alright, assuming I am able to keep my job. I know some people there, my parents are there, my high school is there. I have always wanted to be more active with my high school- I feel like I owe much of my current fortunate situation to my high school.

My life is serendipitous. This transfer could have happened 3 months ago, right in the middle of my law firm's split. It could have happened while I was pregnant. It might not have happened at all, which would mean Kenny would be jobless.

It means I have an opportunity to build a network in Dallas. I can meet a client I've worked for for 4 years but never met in person. I can open up the Dallas market to my law firm. I can get to know a new group of lawyers. I can still visit Austin once a week. It will all be ok. My daughter can attend a really great school- the one I owe my own education to. That alone makes me happy. Everything will be alright. I will still visit Austin to buy lead-free wooden toys.