Gift of Discernment: When a City Changes, Your Discernment Gets Louder

When I left Nashville in 2014, the city had a certain rhythm—certain neighborhoods had a “home” feeling. Coming back, I realized something: you don’t just return to a city… you return to an atmosphere.

And the truth is, Nashville has changed so much that you can feel it in your body before you can explain it with words.

Some places feel polished, quiet, and “new.” Other places feel crowded, tense, and heavy—like everybody’s carrying something. And if you’re self-aware, you start realizing this isn’t just about buildings. It’s about who has access, who got pushed, who stayed, and where the pressure went.

I’m not writing this to blame people. I’m writing this because discernment is real, and the environment you live in affects how you think, how you move, and how safe you feel—emotionally and physically.

At Gift of Discernment, we call it what it is: Discernment is the grace to see what’s true—and the strength to choose what’s healthy.

What I Noticed vs. What It Means

What I noticed:

Neighborhoods that once felt culturally familiar now feel “cleaner,” pricier, and less rooted in the community history I remember.

What it means: Change and investment can be good—but when a city upgrades without protecting its people, the culture can get displaced. Sometimes the streets look better, but the belonging feels different.

What I noticed:

The “vibe” shifts block by block. In some places, I feel calm and clear. In others, my body goes into alert mode.

What it means: Your nervous system is always reading signals—noise, crowding, pace, energy, safety cues, and how people treat each other. Highly self-aware people don’t ignore that. They learn to trust it without living in fear.

What I noticed:

Some areas feel like they’re holding more pressure—more stress, more survival energy, more visible tension.

What it means: When certain communities get priced out or squeezed out of one area, that pressure doesn’t disappear. It shifts. And where pressure lives long enough, it can show up as conflict, frustration, and fatigue.

What I noticed:

When I step outside cultural norms—when I’m not trying to “fit in”—I sense compatibility issues faster: people, places, environments.

What it means: Discernment gets sharper when you stop overriding yourself. You start noticing patterns: what drains you, what fuels you, what elevates you, what keeps you stuck.

Discernment, Intuition, and “Feeling the Space”

Some people call it intuition. Some people call it being sensitive. Some people even call it “ESP.”

I’m going to say it my way:

When you sit quietly, you can sense what’s for you and what’s not. You can feel which spaces match your mindset and spirit—and which spaces require you to shrink, brace, or perform.

And when you get mature, you stop arguing with what your spirit keeps repeating.

Because the truth is: Your peace is not random. It’s a response to alignment.

What I’m Doing Differently Now

This season, I’m not just “observing” the shift—I’m responding to it with wisdom.

• I’m choosing environments that match my mindset, not just what’s familiar.

• I’m protecting my nervous system—because peace is a resource, not a luxury.

• I’m paying attention to patterns, not excuses—people and places always reveal themselves.

• I’m moving like I know what I deserve, with standards that don’t require an apology.

• I’m limiting access to my energy, because everybody doesn’t deserve closeness.

• I’m investing where growth is expected and celebrated, not questioned or resented.

• And yes—I’m moving back up North, where progress isn’t seen as a threat, and elevation is normal.

Peace Is the Proof

Nashville can keep evolving. Neighborhoods can keep changing. People will come and go.

But one thing is going to remain true:

When you’re self-aware, the atmosphere will always tell you the truth. So I’m not forcing what doesn’t fit. I’m not staying where I have to shrink. I’m not negotiating with environments that keep me in survival mode.

I’m not “running” from anything—I’m responding to what God revealed. If my growth makes the wrong rooms uncomfortable, that’s confirmation I was never meant to stay there.

References

1. Nashville gentrification intensity (2010–2020) — National Community Reinvestment Coalition coverage of report findings. NCRC

2. Nashville neighborhood change and Black population decline (2010–2017) — Metro Human Relations Commission report (Nashville.gov PDF). Nashville.gov

3. Antioch/South Nashville population & diversity indicators — Data USA profile (PUMA). Data USA

4. Neighborhood safety concerns linked to daily stress/negative affect/physical symptoms — Robinette et al. (2021), open-access (PMC). PMC

5. Neighborhood crime and mental health (systematic review & meta-analysis) — Baranyi et al. (2021). ScienceDirect

6. Fear of crime and health/well-being (systematic reviews + theory synthesis) — Lorenc et al. (2014), NIHR report. NCBI+1

7. Interoception (body-signal awareness) and stress/feelings — Craig (2002), PubMed. PubMed

8. Interoceptive awareness and emotion regulation — Price & Hooven (2018), Frontiers in Psychology. Frontiers

9. Somatic Marker Hypothesis (bodily signals influencing decisions) — Damasio (1996), PubMed. PubMed

10. ESP definition + the debate — Britannica definition (updated 2025) + British Psychological Society discussion. Encyclopedia Britannica+1

11. Ganzfeld meta-analysis on “anomalous perception” (claims; contested area) — Tressoldi et al. (2024), open-access (PMC). PMC+1

12. Remote viewing program evaluation (historical government docs) — CIA reading room document (Evaluation of Remote Viewing Program). CIA+1

13. Urban Institute — “Causes and Consequences of Separate and Unequal Neighborhoods” (structural racism + neighborhood inequity). Urban Institute

14. Urban Displacement Project (Zuk et al., 2018) — overview of gentrification/displacement dynamics. Urban Displacement

15. Stanford News (2020) — study summary: gentrification can limit options for residents from Black gentrifying neighborhoods, pushing moves into less advantaged areas. Stanford News

16. NCRC (2025) — “Displaced by Design” / coverage noting gentrification trajectories and turnover of Black-majority neighborhoods. NCRC+1

17. Nashville Metro Human Relations Commission — “Understanding Nashville’s Housing Crisis” (documented declines in Black population in several areas). Nashville.gov

18. American Psychological Association — racism/discrimination and stress/health impacts. apa.org

19. Health Affairs (2024) — gentrification associated with racial/ethnic disparities in outcomes (peer-reviewed). Health Affairs

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