One day. I only have one day until the move. This is getting pretty exciting! If everything goes to plan, I should be on I-95 near the Virginia line at this time tomorrow.
The rental van is waiting for us at Enterprise (call to confirm). The stuff is in the garage and arranged in a fashion (via chalk lines) that would make it so it can go directly into the truck with absolutely no complications. My car is half loaded, waiting on the fish tank (tomorrow AM) my television (trunk or passenger seat?), stereo (needed for entertainment during remnants of packing in my room), and our overnight bags.
Tonight could very possibly be the last night I ever sleep in my bed. It has long since been broken (since about 7th grade) but it has been in my room since late elementary school. My parents are going to rearrange my room. And although I still have plenty of stuff in there (wall decorations shelves of books and a desk area full of my stuff (freshly organized)), it really won't be MINE anymore after today. And I think I may be okay with that.
I know that I will always have a home with my family, even if the room isn't mine. [And if you aren't in your room, is it really still your room anyway? - Firefly excerpt] Speaking of family, I talked a few days ago about a friend who "drained me." I swore I would give four more days of helping and then stop. As I typed the last line of that blog, he called. It was an emergency - he needed a friend to come and get him. It isn't fair to give details about his story, but suffice it to say small mindedness resulted in inhabitable living conditions.
He stayed at my house for a few hours after that, while he tried to work out a plan. A little later, I drove him to his uncle's house on the other side of town. He called the next day to tell me things were going well and that he had reunited with his father and step mom (who he hadn't talked to in quite awhile) and that his family at "home" was slowly turning around. It had seemed a deplorable circumstance, and God opened a window for him to become closer with his entire family at once.
So, in my musings, and with some sage advice from a french friend, I have decided to re-evaluate my decision to extricate myself from one-sided friendships. Instead, I am going to spend a little time trying to improve them. If I approach each of these "non-fair weather" friends and explain my feelings, maybe I can bolster my friend base and create more meaningful relationships. It is optimistic to think it will work with everyone. It is practical to not get hurt. But in the long run, it isn't going to hurt me to help others - especially when they are in need. It might be draining sometimes, but to hear the joy in his voice in knowing that things were going to be okay and his family loved him ... it's worth it for that, even if he never speaks to me again.
I wouldn't be here without my family. They annoy me, make me cry, yell at me, and sometimes even hurt me; but they also love me. I mean, what else do you call moving a ton of stuff into a van and out of a van after driving for five hours just to turn around the next day and drive home? Oh yeah, with a predicted temperature of 100 degrees (40+ C) with possible thunderstorms. Or asking a million and one questions to make sure you haven't forgotten anything? Taking in your friends even though you aren't home? I call that love.
So for everyone out there who thinks their parents may not understand them, that their siblings are incomprehensible, that their family might be the picture portrait for "dysfunctional home of the month" (to our credit, I don't think I have ever actually thought some of that myself), I challenge you to call your family tonight or this weekend. Tell them you love them unconditionally, even if you do not like or understand them. Tell them that you wouldn't be here without them. Tell them how important they are. Because you never know when you might not be able to do it again. You never know how it might brighten their day. And isn't it always wonderful to hear "I love you" in return?
I think I may have ventured from my 24 hours until take-off plan a little, but you were getting pretty tired of reading my to-do lists anyway, weren't you? Have a fantastic Friday. I'm off to see the wizard ... I mean off to finish packing. Love always, ~Heather
The rental van is waiting for us at Enterprise (call to confirm). The stuff is in the garage and arranged in a fashion (via chalk lines) that would make it so it can go directly into the truck with absolutely no complications. My car is half loaded, waiting on the fish tank (tomorrow AM) my television (trunk or passenger seat?), stereo (needed for entertainment during remnants of packing in my room), and our overnight bags.
Tonight could very possibly be the last night I ever sleep in my bed. It has long since been broken (since about 7th grade) but it has been in my room since late elementary school. My parents are going to rearrange my room. And although I still have plenty of stuff in there (wall decorations shelves of books and a desk area full of my stuff (freshly organized)), it really won't be MINE anymore after today. And I think I may be okay with that.
I know that I will always have a home with my family, even if the room isn't mine. [And if you aren't in your room, is it really still your room anyway? - Firefly excerpt] Speaking of family, I talked a few days ago about a friend who "drained me." I swore I would give four more days of helping and then stop. As I typed the last line of that blog, he called. It was an emergency - he needed a friend to come and get him. It isn't fair to give details about his story, but suffice it to say small mindedness resulted in inhabitable living conditions.
He stayed at my house for a few hours after that, while he tried to work out a plan. A little later, I drove him to his uncle's house on the other side of town. He called the next day to tell me things were going well and that he had reunited with his father and step mom (who he hadn't talked to in quite awhile) and that his family at "home" was slowly turning around. It had seemed a deplorable circumstance, and God opened a window for him to become closer with his entire family at once.
So, in my musings, and with some sage advice from a french friend, I have decided to re-evaluate my decision to extricate myself from one-sided friendships. Instead, I am going to spend a little time trying to improve them. If I approach each of these "non-fair weather" friends and explain my feelings, maybe I can bolster my friend base and create more meaningful relationships. It is optimistic to think it will work with everyone. It is practical to not get hurt. But in the long run, it isn't going to hurt me to help others - especially when they are in need. It might be draining sometimes, but to hear the joy in his voice in knowing that things were going to be okay and his family loved him ... it's worth it for that, even if he never speaks to me again.
I wouldn't be here without my family. They annoy me, make me cry, yell at me, and sometimes even hurt me; but they also love me. I mean, what else do you call moving a ton of stuff into a van and out of a van after driving for five hours just to turn around the next day and drive home? Oh yeah, with a predicted temperature of 100 degrees (40+ C) with possible thunderstorms. Or asking a million and one questions to make sure you haven't forgotten anything? Taking in your friends even though you aren't home? I call that love.
So for everyone out there who thinks their parents may not understand them, that their siblings are incomprehensible, that their family might be the picture portrait for "dysfunctional home of the month" (to our credit, I don't think I have ever actually thought some of that myself), I challenge you to call your family tonight or this weekend. Tell them you love them unconditionally, even if you do not like or understand them. Tell them that you wouldn't be here without them. Tell them how important they are. Because you never know when you might not be able to do it again. You never know how it might brighten their day. And isn't it always wonderful to hear "I love you" in return?
I think I may have ventured from my 24 hours until take-off plan a little, but you were getting pretty tired of reading my to-do lists anyway, weren't you? Have a fantastic Friday. I'm off to see the wizard ... I mean off to finish packing. Love always, ~Heather
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