There's No Place Like Home

Grammy’s Perspective: Historically, when God has moved us we have had to WAIT to see what He is doing through that move…through the pain of telling family and friends “Goodbye” and leaving church families who have loved, helped, and supported us through a variety of trials in our lives.

This has been no exception. Leaving Kansas after putting down roots was – well – it was painful. We had NO doubt that we were supposed to go – the “handwriting was on the wall.” (Daniel 5:5 gives a biblical reference for this old saying.) It was evident to everyone that God had been preparing Pop for the job he had been offered in South Carolina…it was a dream job. The only drawbacks were moving one teenage daughter (Pretty Princess, who only remembered Kansas), leaving behind three married daughters, three sons-in-law, two grandchildren, Pop’s Mom, my parents, and a WHOLE BUNCH of family and friends. Like I said – it was painful… Our married daughters were stoic when I wanted to just fall apart. Of course, Pretty Princess and I held it together for the good of all on that last day as we kissed our family goodbye. I remember sensing that Lou Lou was not fooled by Grammy’s pretending that it was okay to live that far away from people you love.
…and it didn’t become less painful to be so far away as six more “grandblessings” came.

So...here we are near the end of this chapter. Listing our house to sell and making our lists of things to do before we each leave our work in SC has been bittersweet. We will never forget the things God has brought about during our time here. He moved us for our good – to teach us things we needed to know in an environment where we had only each other to lean on. He has accomplished much in our hearts that we may never be able to convey in words. We are grateful.

I don’t have real ruby red slippers to wear as I click my heels together and say, “There’s no place like home…” but I do have the cutest pair of pink and navy muck boots waiting for me in the mud room of the farmhouse…I think they will do.

Pop's Perspective: I can't express how excited I was when I landed the job in South Carolina. It was and is a dream job for someone like me. I have been so blessed to get to do what I love. It is meaningful work with interesting people and just simply fun. I've had the privilege of training committed young federal officers and helping equip them with the skills to survive in a dangerous world. I recognize how blessed I've been to enjoy such fulfilling and rewarding work.

There are only two jobs I would be more interested in than the one I have in South Carolina. Both are in Kansas and one is right where we would choose to be because of the close proximity to Four Sisters Farm and our precious family. The odds of this job coming open were remote and it was even more unlikely I would be able to secure the position. In my business these type of jobs are few and far between but God is good and always ahead of us. We have again experienced the unlikely and we are not foolish enough to call it luck. God is always ahead, always making a way. We are headed back to Kansas and we are filled with gratitude and thanksgiving. It would be more than enough to return to those we love, but God threw in the bonus of a great job. In these hard economic times, it is so much more than we could have imagined.

I am truly excited to start a new career challenge and spend some time on the farm. We have missed too many birthdays, Easter egg hunts, soccer games, recitals, smooches, hugs, crayon pictures, talks with our children and walks with our grandchildren. I look forward to just being in the presence of those I love without counting the days until we have to get on an airplane and leave. We still have much to do and trying to sell a house in this market is scary. But, shame on us if we don't proceed with faith. It looks like that old barn at Four Sisters might get a face lift a little sooner than originally planned. Why not, you know we're going to be living very close to lots of family and friends.....(you can't see, but trust me, I'm smiling).