21st Ave S

I'm sitting outside one of my favorite cafes in the city, braving a blustery wind because today is one of those rare winter days when the sun peeks out and the temperature is bearable and everyone rushes to be outside because they can't believe spring might actually be returning. There is even a saxophone player 100 feet away, providing an incredibly excellent soundtrack to this afternoon.

Joy always fills my heart when I sit here and take in the view of colorful shops all in a row, and colorful people bustling about their days. This is the first street in Nashville I fell in love with. I remember my first visit. I had just finished my junior year of college, and used some about-to-expire frequent flyer miles to come to Nashville. It was a perfect weekend. Summer had arrived in full force; the sun was out, not a cloud in the sky, and I was high on the feeling of accomplishment that only comes from leaving your textbooks behind for three months of freedom.

A friend invited me to spend the afternoon with him, exploring the city and catching up. We came to this street. I remember sitting on the brick sidewalk, eating frozen yogurt and thinking, "Oh yeah, this city is perfect. I want to be here."

While I have always been a big dreamer, I have not always been a big doer. My Nashville dream felt far away and unattainable for the next two years, as I toiled through senior year and the seemingly insurmountable goal of financial stability.

And yet, here I am. Sitting outside the very same cafe I walked past all that time ago. This is a place I come often. It is part of my life. The employees in the shops up and down this street have become friends. I am known. It was at this table, where I'm sitting now, I told a wonderful man that I would let him date me.

I have become one of the people I so envied the first time I came here.

This street is a reminder to me of God's grace, provision and goodness. A reminder that He has put desires in my heart that He WILL fulfill, in His own timing. Never, I've noticed, when I demand it, but when He deems me ready.

That knowledge, in addition to this sunshine, is cause for great joy.