Au Revoir & Bonjour

there's so much i want to say about the last year,

this move,

our life,

the people,

the places...

where do I begin?

***

let's begin with the following picture.

it was taken while i sailed away in a brimming mini van on the route i have driven at least a hundred times, but this time it wasn't just a visit, it was a permanent move away from a place we had lived almost our entire marriage. i popped in a cd a friend gave me and tried to make sense of the mix of emotions i was feeling. this would be our tenth move. it would be so romantic to say that we've been running from the law, but i must claim that these changes were only due to a switch in job or needing more space for our growing family. after ten moves you'd think it would get easier, but while slowly moving up in the world we accumulate more stuff, more kids, and more to haul to the next abode. moving is like having growing pains, the interim is really the pits, but later you become a stronger person from them.

***

there are ups and downs in every story...

here is the latest chapter in

the chronicles of schofield

***

once upon a time there was a man and wife. they liked eachother a lot. somedays they bickered like old roommates, but usually they had the hots for eachother. the man liked nerdy stuff and manly machines, the wife liked making stuff, including kids. the man had great experience in the business and retail world but was soon given an opportunity by his father to join the world of builders. the man watched, listened, and learned, sometimes it was hard, sometimes it came easy, but all the while he was gaining skills needed to create his own homebuilding and development business. he was truly grateful for the opportunity given to him to learn a new trade and spread his wings. the man managed many a project, the wife managed the home. their building ventures led them to tooele where the man built his wife a beautiful palace. the palace had special touches, fanciful rooms, and plenty of room for their children to run and flounce about.

*

over time, the once thriving economy started slowing. people bit off more than they could chew, people made commitments they couldn't keep, people spent money they didn't have. soon the man found himself full of talents but nowhere to use them. the summer of 2008 brought a crossroads for the man and wife. they pondered over many choices, do we look elsewhere for work, do we ride out the wave, do we move our family again? with prayer and fervor the man took a job restoring barns in a land far away.

*

the wife was thankful for the grace but hoped her hunk would be back soon. many lonely nights were spent sleeping alone longing for the partriarch of the family to return. when the barn project came to a close, the market was still lingering somewhere in the burmuda triangle. the man told his wife of a permanent offer of a stable job that would bring fruit and nectar to their family. the only catch was that they would have to pick up and move to the far away place. once again grateful for the blessing, they agreed it was the best plan for their family.

*

for nine long months the man worked away from home while the wife made cookies with the kids and let the house get messy. they waited for their house to sell, and on the weekends the man saw his wife and their love story was rekindled. it's true that time apart makes the heart grow fonder. with man working hard to provide for the family, and wife being nurtured at home by loving friends in her solace, the clan refocused their life in realizing what matters most. they had faith that if they were patient, and kept doing "what was right"(staying out of debt, paying tithing, prayer, not selling their children to the gypsies) that the God that had always provided for them, would have something in store for them at his own time and place.

*

the house sold, and the man and wife began their search in the new land for a home. this time, they longed for something different than a palace in a neighborhood. they wanted a simple life in the country with a humble home and perhaps some chickens, sheep, and bee's (the wife's desires), oh, and a dog too (the man's desire). after searching about, the wife fell in love with a little jewel on a large stretch of land. the jewel must have shone in its day with peach accents of custom draperies and walls dripping in floral wallpapers, but she saw in this home abundant potential and charm. how surprising to her that it hadn't been snatched up yet. it was theirs. wrapping up details in selling this, and purchasing that, the man and wife finally brought closure to one chapter, and began a new one.

*

finally all under the same roof, the man and wife could sigh a deep breath of relief. with lessons learned, along come new ones... like how to keep the new dog from escaping out the secret passages in the fence, or how the wife can overcome having asthma attacks from the the allergies she's experiencing in her new home, or how to properly shut the 70's door so it doesn't pop back open, or where is that funky smell coming from, or how does well water and a septic tank work anyways? already, the man and wife have been overwhelmed with plates of cookies and cupcakes from friendly new neighbors who come to welcome them.

love abides strong in the country,

and the man and wife are together again and happy.

end scene.

***

"the loaders"

chris.jason.jason.phil

"the unloaders"

sadie.jeff.sarah.eliza.jason.mom.dad.trent.xavier.brittani.sam.man.wife

"the parting prizes"
thank you sweet ones,
i treasure you more than you know.