Home at last

There is nothing as daunting as moving. It is exciting before, and a relief afterward, but the during is sure to bring lots of frustration, anxiety, and adjusting one's expectations as events refuse to comply with our original plans.

We arrived in North Carolina after three days of being encased in a car with three people, numerous suitcases, and a psychotic cat whose name is Ophelia but whom we have affectionately dubbed "Alien Kitty," due to her small head size and bizarre behavior.

The arrival to our new state had been proceeded by misunderstandings with the movers(only half of our belongings were loaded onto the van), having to say goodbye to our beloved older cat, Bear, who we found out the day before the move had an advanced liver disease, and the normal mixed feelings of being excited about a new beginning but being sad to leave loved ones and familiar surroundings.

It is now day four after we "landed' here and we still have no furniture save the air mattresses we bought at Family Dollar and the television set that Alan found in the attic. We hope and pray that the movers will arrive with real beds today. But in spite of the complications and lack of "stuff," being here is amazing.

Yesterday, we went walking behind our tiny house. We have a neighbor on one side, but open fields and woods for miles behind us. Being in the woods and realizing that I live here and can walk in them any time I choose to, made my heart overflow with joy. I kept asking Alan to pinch me because it all seems so surreal. The woods has always been my favorite natural environment where I feel the most peaceful and at home. When we rented the little house via a property management company I knew that it was outside the city limits, but had no idea that the forest would be my back yard. I look forward to many many walks in those woods and don't know if I will ever recover from the wonder that we get to call this beautiful place home.