"City Girl"- Meet Nasia Woods
Monday, August 18, 2014. It's a beautiful sunny day in the always humid city of Opelousas, it is also the start of a new journey. My husband of one week, is starting his dream job. For me, however, it is the start of a long trek into existing - with no dreams in sight.
Don't get me wrong, I love children, I take pleasure in learning, & Jesus is my homeboy. This opportunity definitely falls in the realm of my interests. However, I am a city girl with a passion for the arts (film, theater, design, you name it), & lets just say this isn't exactly the town I pictured myself in during the first years of marriage. My transition to HFO was a rather rough one. I don't have a rosy picture to paint- I didn't want to be here. I missed my hobbies, I missed the city, I missed my friends, I missed my family. I began a journey into the unknown with my new life partner. It was a lot of transitions for me at once, and I was not dealing with them well...
Until the (wise) man God gave to lead me decided to start a basketball team in late winter of 2015. Developing those relationships on and off the court with our guys really aided in melting the ice cold heart I was using as a crutch. Watching young boys begin to cultivate the character of a young man motivated me. Watching the interactions between my husband & these boys felt like more than a job, it was a family. Being a spectator in their lives was no longer an option. I wanted in on the game. Their heart for the sport and their love for each other set an unquenchable fire inside my soul.
I began to seek making small changes, to uses the wisdom of the veterans on our team, to follow the actions of my spouse and put my all into these kids and stop viewing it as a job. Gripping this experience from a different vantage point gave me joy and peace. Loving someone other than myself gave me purpose. Before I knew it, I knew my kids personally, and I loved them and their families. In essence, I loved my job.
My rookie season has ended, and thanks to God's grace & plenty of patience from this staff, I wasn't cut from the team during my rough patch. And I'm grateful for that time. My brokenness has refined my goals to intersect with God's plan for my life. Of course, I still love the arts & desire to use my gifts for good, but now I have a new hope. My "hope" for Nasia is to live passionately and love people. I'm still the same city girl, just with a new outlook. Alongside my best friend and my second family, I will embrace all that Opelousas has to offer & encourage our kids to look deep inside themselves to see the beauty in their brokenness as well.