We left yesterday at 3 PM for Alaska! It was hard to say goodbye. Dad and Mama, Laverne and Julie, and their girls all gathered around and prayed for us before we left. There were many tears, and we passed around the tissues. These are in our Folks; our people. The thought of not seeing them for a long time made the goodbye that much harder. It’s always hard during those last few moments to know what to say. Words don’t measure up. Talking is not enough to express all the feelings and emotions churning around.
And then we were off! Our two children, two dogs, and five puppies with us. Everyone waved as we headed out the lane one last time, and we swallowed the lump on our throats and looked ahead.
We have driven this stretch of road toward my folks in Ohio so many times, but I feel like I saw it with new eyes that day. Saying goodbye to each bit of countryside we pass. We don’t know how much time will pass before we see Pennsylvania again.
We feel as though we’ve been launched. Andy said he feels like he has more dignity now that we are off on our own. Not that we were embarrassed about our way of living, but living with your parents is generally viewed as being a “mooch”. Living there on the farm taught us so much and was the place that gave us the freedom to do what we are doing today. Had we been paying expensive rent or a house payment, I doubt we would have been able to head off to Alaska to build our cabin debt free. It at least would have been much more diffucult. But yes, I understand what Andy means. There is a certain amount of dignity and pride in striking out on your own, standing on your own two feet. I know it will be an adjustment, but I am so excited about the challenges that await! We have been planning to move for a year now, and now that it is finally happening it feels a little unreal.