It's April. Autumn. The temperature dipped below 22 C (70 F) this morning. Students wore sweaters (jumpers) to school. It made me laugh because I remembered a time when we lived in Nova Scotia and it got up to 50 degrees. We all ran out in our swim suits to get some sun.
I know it will happen again, because we are moving. Somewhere cold.
We are moving to Anchorage Alaska.
It's all a bit of a shock really, though I don't know why it should be. From the time we arrived here, I knew we only had three years. At first, it made it hard for me to make Brisbane home. Why make friends if we are just going to have to move again? Then I met really nice people, and I couldn't help making friends. It is the same story wherever we have lived. I start to lie to myself after a few months. I tell myself that I am home. This is the place I am from. And then it's not a lie anymore and I am home.
It is hard for me to leave my home.
I'v decided it's ok to put down roots. I'm a jade plant - a succulent. Just pick the leaf off a jade plant and stick it in some soil. A couple months later, it's a full fledged plant with a home of its own. I am a succulent. Uprooting is not so bad. Wherever I go my roots will grow. We don't say goodbye, only see you later.
The last couple of weeks have been a rollercoaster. We are so excited to go somewhere new, but it breaks my heart to see my children sad to leave their friends. The older my children get, the harder it is for them. Caleb doesn't seem to be sad at all. The older children on the other hand. . . it breaks my heart to cause them so much pain.
But we had to move sooner or later, and in some ways, it is easier to move sooner, before Bryce starts high school in the US.
We have been very busy lately.
A month ago, we learned we were moving.
Three weeks ago, Shon and I left our family under the care of my brother Tom and his wife Lindsay so that we could fly to Alaska and look for a house.
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| Tom and Lindsay, and a koala. They color coordinated! |
Two weeks ago, we came home to Brisbane, and welcomed my sister Becki and her husband Jeremy and son Ethan to visit us! It was so much fun to have them visiting. It was such a great excuse to ignore all of my packing responsibilities and be a tourist one last time. (I'll post pictures another day.)
Three days ago, my family left. And the work began. The packers came today. My house is a box city. I don't know why it is so disconcerting to see everything in boxes. The house feels empty. It even has an echo. Actually the acoustics are nice. Sarah keeps singing. She must like the acoustics too.
We are really going to miss it here. . .
2 comments:
Juli, good luck with your next move. Ben's brother and his family (4 daughters) moved to Anchorage a little over a year ago. Maybe you'll meet them...another Brown family. :). Sometime we might even make it out there for a visit. :). Would be so fun to see your family after so many years!
We are preparing to move this summer - not as far as you, but it feels like it to our older children. I am also very sad to uproot our children, but we did it in part because Rebecca has one more year before high school and it felt like now was the better time to go. Feel free to post tips on how you got your kids through it because I am always looking for ways to help mine :) Good luck on this new adventure!
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