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This blog is dedicated to those who helped us load and unload all of our earthly treasures this past week. We really appreciated it!
Well, we have arrived safely in Colorado for six weeks of fun. It is surreal to load everything you own into a truck, drive it halfway across the nation, and call that new place “home”. I don’t think we would do so well as nomads.
Prior to loading we spent about three weeks saying goodbye. We had a fair amount of going away parties and dinner engagements, as well as several last conversations. On the one hand it was really difficult. We cried pools of tears and had to drink lots of water to make up for it. On the other hand it was awesome to realize how many people love us in Minnesota, and likewise, how many people we really love there.
Loading the truck was an experience. Including Sarah and myself, there were 9 people loading the van and three cleaning the apartment. One of the guys just stayed in the moving van and played Tetris with all our stuff. It’s a good thing he did because we rented a 16’
truck from Penske. 16’ is codeword for “You’re an idiot to rent this truck unless you live in a single room.” You should have seen me and Sarah when we arrived at the rental place to pick up the truck the morning of the move. We took one look at it, and I immediately started sweating and telling Sarah it would be okay. I quickly followed that tactic with another bold stroke, called “Hypothetically speaking, if it doesn’t all fit what would you leave behind?” That was a fun game to play. Interestingly enough, the two furniture items she said she would be okay parting with were exactly the ones that didn’t make it on the truck. We had several pieces of artwork, cleaning supplies, and three bicycles to fit in the truck on our own before we left. It was no small task to pack our two bedroom apartment into 800 cubic feet. We used all 800 of those feet. There is some innate sense of accomplishment built inside every man to size up a task, think there’s no way in a billion years it will work out, and then actually do it. I basked in the accomplishment for
a while. However, I was also struck with the realization that some folks live with the clothes on their back and nothing more. Sobering to consider how much difference a shift in perspective can make.
Break in the game for a timeline— Tuesday—loaded van and stayed overnight with friends, Tof and Kristi.
Wednesday—checked out of apartment, loaded last few items, drove to Des Moines to meet Becky and Josh (Sarah’s sister and bro-in-law), then continued onto Omaha for the night.
Thursday—drove the rest of the way to Aurora, sank into comfortable chairs at Kevin and Jaime’s and enjoyed a few hours of delirium.
Friday—unloaded van, praised God that was over, celebrated with dinner at Old Chicago’s.
There you have it.
We met Josh and Bex late afternoon on Wednesday in Des Moines to drop off one of our cars with them. We ate at Cracker Barrel together and spent the dinner hour like we normally do with them, laughing through most of it, talking about bodily functions and what Josh is learning in med school, and reminiscing about shared experiences. We love those guys.
The drive to Omaha and then to Aurora was largely uneventful,
just like this sentence. Some guys from our new church home in Aurora met me, Sarah, and Kevin Friday morning to unload. It was great! We moved our stuff into the basement of a home owned by a couple from the church where it will stay until we return from Guatemala.
It’s nice to be here and see the mountains again. Just yesterday on the phone someone here in Aurora said, “Welcome home.” It meant a lot.
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chris o'dell
non-member comment
glad to hear it....
hey guys, i'm glad to hear you made it "home!" i bet it's pretty exciting. as you may well know, but i'm going to tell you again, you guys have been really special to me and i'm so thankful that you follow God, even if it leads you billion miles away to guatemala! sincerely, me