March 10,
2009, we moved into this home, a family of five with two dogs and a bearded dragon.
We had made the 1,947 mile journey from Draper, Utah to Braselton, Georgia, and
we were excited to see what God had planned next for our family. Hunter was 13,
Haley was 10, and Haden was eight. Life was good and was only going to get better.
We were full of anticipation and hope, and for six years we knew laughter and
tears as we built memory upon memory into the foundation of our lives. When
Woody received a job offer that would relocate our family to Raleigh, North
Carolina, we all tried to view the move as another positive opportunity, but
truth be known, not one of us wanted to move. Braselton had become our home and
the people here had become our family. For eight months Woody commuted as we
tried to sell our house and adjust to another transfer. And then life took an
unexpected turn; in an instant we became too well acquainted with grief and
trauma.
Now, for the
last time, we are packing up our personal items and leaving the house we first
called home eight years ago—the house we so carefully chose with Woody at the
head of our family, guiding our decisions and protecting our hearts. As we pack
up the boxes, I wonder how we will pack up the memories. Can we carefully place
them in bubble wrap and pray they won’t become fragmented and broken
through the move? Can we label the boxes “fragile” and gently place them in the
moving van with specific instructions as to how they should be handled? How do
we gather six years of memories—memories that pervade every room—and keep them
intact? How do we peel them off the walls and separate them from the rooms that
Woody once occupied? Every space in this home tells the story of Woody’s last
years. I can still picture him sitting behind his desk in his office or
standing over his bathroom sink shaving. When we leave, will the memories go
with us?
I cannot
answer even one of those questions. I do not see how this will play out.
However, I do know that just as we have survived every excruciating moment
since the day of Woody’s horrific death, we will survive this one too. Woody
may no longer be here to guide our decisions and protect our hearts, but God
has taken over and will continue to hold us throughout another transition. I
will trust Him to carry the memories and store them away for safe keeping, and
when the timing is right, unpack them one by one.
July 10, 2017,
we will move from this home into a smaller, more manageable one. We are no
longer a family of five, yet I know God will be faithful and fill the next
house with laughter and tears. We will construct new memories on top of the
foundation that has already been laid. So, here is to the next leg of our journey and
praying that it will be better.