a coincidence or a sign... you tell me

hello, dear friends and readers. something happened today that i simply could not pass up sharing {or asking what you think about }.

but first i have to preface it, especially for those of you who are newer to my blog and my ramblings. as you may or may not know, b. {the hubby } and i have been swimming for some time in a sea of questions... longing for a shore of answers.

there's the whole trying to have babies thing. but then there's the whole career thing. we were both laid off last spring and the industry in which we met and have both been in since we graduated from college is drastically changing. those industry changes on top of a struggling economy has only multiplied our uncertainty and fears about the big "what do we do with our lives" question. needless to say, these big life questions only lead us to one more big question. "should we stay where we are?"

we are both working again, but both of us had to go back for less money, as well as less hours for him recently, and even more recently, less hours for me. plus, i am only freelance as opposed to a permanent employee. so when the work runs out, they will no longer need me. i realize our predicament is something many people have had to face, so i am not looking for your sympathy here. i'm just setting up the story... the true story.

well, there have been some mighty tough days for us. this was one of them. i thought i was going to go in to work after a doc appointment and be there for a full {or at least close to full } day. but when i got to work, there was very little for me to do, and the projects that are in the works are sort of on hold. i'll have some work to go in for in the next day or two {i hope!}, but it's still sort of scary when this happens. not to say i minded having the time off. that is always nice! but paying bills is better than time off if i had to choose one or the other.

so i was discouraged. so was b. we both had been for a couple of days. the shower head is broken, and we can't even go get a new one until one of us gets paid. it's normally not quite that bad. we just happen to be in a short waiting period, and the timing was bad. still, it's little things like this that can start to weigh on you. when you are juggling bigger weights, the little ones thrown on top can sometimes throw you off balance, you know?

so i called him while i was driving from the doctor to work. we talked a bit about our frustrations. i told him i'm trying to hold it together {through my tears, of course }. and he said, "i know." he's right where i am, only he copes and processes a little differently than i do. but he was sweet and kind, and then he told me something that i did not quite believe when i heard it. not because he is the unbelievable type. but because it was just so crazy coincidental to believe.

because we were on the phone, he just gave me the short version. but tonight after he got home from working out, we made our island earlier than usual, and then we both kicked back on it to talk and tackle what small amount of life stuff we had the energy for. it was then that i got the full, detailed story.

okay, just one more thing before i tell you what he told me. b's parents live in florida. they moved there almost ten years ago. we visit when we can, and they come up to visit us as well. but after my dad died three and a half years ago, it really got b. thinking about wanting to be closer to his parents so we could see them more. now, he hates humidity, so florida is not quite his cup of tea. colorado has always been more his kind of state {except georgia, of course!}.

but if you know me, you know i love heat and sun and don't mind humidity one bit! i lived in florida for a short time as a child. it's safe to say i'd move there in a heartbeat. so when discussion of moving has been put on the table this past year, austin, nashville area, colorado and florida have all come up. but as of recently, we've been highly leaning toward florida.

the hard part is, it's very tough to find a job somewhere that you do not live. and it's very hard to pick up and move somewhere without a job lined up. so it's a catch 22. thus the uncertainty we've been under, and the questions that have us feeling stuck... mainly, "should we go to florida???"

finally, the good part... what he shared with me. while my husband was driving to work {and i believe every word he said }, he had been praying like he always does when he drives to work. praying and asking for direction and answers about all those big question marks we see. he told me his words weren't "give me a sign" or anything like that. but he was definitely asking for answers and direction and help.

almost immediately after praying this, he saw a big box smack dab in the center of the road {right on the lane divider }, and in big letters across the side of the box, it said "FLORIDA" and nothing else. now, we have to assume it was a crate or box of oranges that fell from a grocery truck or something like that. but how random for that to have happened in that very spot, at that very time, for my husband to see right after that very prayer.

i'm sort of a believer in signs... probably the biggest reason the movie signs is one of my top five favorites. i think we can receive them a million different ways. i believe i've had signs throughout my life. i really do. so i'm leaning toward the opposite direction of "this is just a coincidence". and even if it is, it SO made our day. we laughed with delight about it, and that alone was worth it happening, even if it's not the answer to all our problems and questions.

i just had to go looking for this photo that i took almost two years ago, and add my little message to it just for this post. it fit perfectly. oh... and i added the little heavenly light for effect, too. i couldn't help myself.

so i ask you. coincidence or sign?