So, by my calculation, this is my 22nd move in my life. The most memorable moves though are from my childhood, and I suppose that is why I find myself concerned for our little ones as we make this change. When we moved from South Dakota to Montana, we moved via a grain truck. Upon our arrival in Montana, I saw sprinklers for the first time in my life. That’s my memory there. When we moved to Santa Cruz, CA I remember taking turns riding in the U-Haul with Dad and in the Dasher with Mum. Upon arrival, I realized that the neighborhood had no children, and I was alone.
Now, we are moving to Atlanta. I am excited to be going back to Georgia, as that is where I have always felt at home, but I wonder what our little ones will go through. What will be their memories? They are such dear little helpers, and I have to remind myself, that they want to participate too….even though their chaos of toys, co-mingled with my chaos of boxes and paper about puts me over the top….still, they want to help.
I know they don’t really realize that we won’t be going to church in the same place, or with the same people. They will have new faces to learn, and names. That fact alone, breaks my heart, because I remember as a child, the profound sadness and loneliness I felt when we moved away from South Dakota. We moved away from everything I had known up till then. Mum saved a letter I wrote to my friend Dwight. It started out, “Dear Dwight, I miss my Hamill Home.” I don’t remember writing that letter, but I do remember hiding under a bush and crying. Crying because I missed the prairie, my animals, my friends, my freedom….
I pray our children don’t have to go through that pain. It’s a lot for a little shaver of 5 to go through. Thankfully, Atlanta boasts a zoo and aquarium, and the promise of bikes, something they have been ardently praying for for months now.
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