Goodbye to the Stuff

blooming Hosta in our yard on our moving day

"... no turning back, no turning back." (to borrow a phrase from a gospel chorus)  Every day is a milestone now! 

On Wednesday the guys came out from Christian Brothers Moving and Storage  to pack what I had not already boxed up out of my crazy-driven desire to be organized over the past two months. Or to be more specific, they packed up the kitchen, dining room, the garage, and those odd-shaped and large items for which I could not easily get boxes.

shrink wrap on a grand scale

The big surprise was that on Wednesday they also covered everything with huge rolls of plastic. We expected that to be done on Thursday (today), so we thought Wednesday would be our last night in The Brown Bungalow.

Sure, we could have slept at the house, but with all the tables and chairs shrink-wrapped, lamps dismantled and packed, and the Internet and cable turned off (a day earlier than we had requested), our last night was going to be bleak.  Beloved called our hotel to see if they had a room for us one day earlier than we had reserved. They essentially said, "Sure, c'mon on over!"

one of our two moving trucks

After a good night's sleep (although we have been waking up at 4am of late), we got back over to The Brown Bungalow where our adventure resumed. 

Five young men piled out of the two moving trucks and got to work so fast it made our heads spin. Apparently work is more enjoyable with music, so one of the guys played tunes supplied by Pandora from the 60s, 70s and 80s. That took the fun to a whole new level!!

this picture makes the packing look precarious
but it didn't stay that way

Beloved and I stayed on the covered front porch most of the morning, out of the way but sitting on front row [stools] to watch the action....except when Pandora came up with a song too good to pass up! We did not act our age (or maybe we did!) by dancing all over the front porch to the music, making probable fools of ourselves but doggone it, this was a happy day for us!! The Brown Bungalow sits on a corner of a somewhat busy residential intersection, so we did get some quizzical looks from cars driving by. But who cares?!! We laughed a lot.

Beloved with Oreck (the vacuum cleaner)

Then as the rooms were emptied, Beloved vacuumed the carpets and floors for me while I dusted the baseboards. (We make a great team!)

some items were too large to box up;
they were shrink-wrapped and well-padded on the truck

Incredibly, the five guys worked for only 3 hours to load the two trucks and then we bid them and our worldly goods goodbye. 

As Beloved emailed to our friend Winn this evening, 

"We told the moving trucks goodbye today and I said, 'Ok, Lord, Your stuff is on those trucks. Lend it back to us as You will and in Your timing.' 

Barbara said, 'I've been slimming down the stuff for a couple of months now. This is the Lord's opportunity to take care of things I may have missed.'"

That was not to cast any negative thoughts on our movers, but as anyone who has surrendered their belongings to a moving company knows, there comes a time when you watch it roll away from the house and you have to truly "let it go" emotionally.

We also have to remember that it's all "just stuff." 

My staff eagerly awaited their turn to board the truck.
Pictured here with "window seats": Rent-a-Nurse, Mrs Berniece Mertz and
Eaves Dropping (the Home and Garden reporter from the Whistlestop Weekly)
Mary: please note that Aloha Bear preferred to nap with his back to the camera!

On a misty-eyed note, we were blessed on this day to have conversations with dear neighbors: Karren and Steve, Chalesse and AJ, and Katy with her sons Ayden and Nolan. (I love Katy because she reminds me of our daughter, Surfer Girl)

When I think of the good neighbors we've have at The Brown Bungalow, Psalm 16:6 comes to mind:

The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places...

Good people have been all around us, helping us to feel safe and happy. Such is a blessing not to be taken lightly.

Son #2 and The Lil' Red-haired Girl

Tomorrow we have our appointment to sign the closing papers on the sale of The Brown Bungalow and then the (by far) most difficult of this entire process will take place. We will be bidding farewell to one of our sons and his precious wife who live in the metro area. 

They have looked after us and in on us over the past twenty years, giving us much joy and satisfaction. Son #2 has delighted us with his funny pet names for us while helping us move furniture around, install under-the-cabinet lighting, helping his dad build huge storage shelves in the basement, and visited us when we were each in the hospital.

The Lil' Red-Haired Girl has absolutely fascinated us with her talents ranging from a home-based business of Internet web designs (a career shared with our son), her ability to make curtains and install tile floors and backsplashes in their near-century-old home, and taking care of her leased horse.

They both have 'sand in their shoes,' so to speak, so we know they will come see us as their busy schedules allow. It's never 'goodbye' with them, but more of a 'See ya later.' This time it will be with a damp twinkle in our eyes. 

Probably the next time I post here on the blog it will be with tidbits from our cross-country travel from here to the Land of Flip Flops. We have some stops to make along the way that will surely be 'blog-worthy.'

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Once again, because we are on the road and don't have the time right now, I've got the comments box closed. Just read and say a prayer for our safety, if you would. Thank you.

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