3 Weeks Left

With the arrival of June comes the anticipation of our time ending here, but also the excitement of heading back to Texas and seeing the people we've missed most. On the other hand, we've also made some great friends whom we've shared this season of life together...saying goodbye is going to be hard.

One thing that I've read about and learned from hearing different people's stories over the last 6 months is how people say good-bye. I knew I wanted to do a better job of having closure for our family and not just pack up and hit the road. I felt like we did that as we moved out of our house and left Texas. I wish I had done something to help the kids (and us!) transition into those phases of life a little better.

So over the next few weeks we're putting into practice a suggestion that was mentioned in a session on MK's (missionary kids). Get a poster board and write all of the things you will miss about your current location no matter how long you've lived there. I loved this idea! We could actually articulate who and what we would miss about our time here.

So poster board was purchased and our list of good-bye's of Waxhaw began.

What struck me more than anything were what the kids said they would miss first...the people we've met on this leg of the journey:

--The boys that have caused havoc in the "creek"and orange mud. They're now are on the hunt for a poisonous snake at the lake (don't worry...no one has caught anything...yet!)

--Sweet neighbors we break bread with nearly every week.

--Our playground, swimming and picnic buddies.

--Friends who we've cried with, prayed for and exchanged lots of hugs.

--The single guys who have offered their humor, harassment of my kids (in the form of water balloons) and taken my dinner offers seriously leaving us without leftovers.

--Friends who share the joy of expecting new life in the months to come.

I don't know if saying "good-bye" is ever easy or ever done well, but I'm thankful for the people we've met here. I'm looking forward to hearing our friends stories of how the Lord uses these families all over the world. And who knows, maybe one day our paths will cross again...maybe in Waxhaw.