The Road to D.C.

Goodbyes are so hard.  I do not like them at all.  I'm not mature about them at all.  I know all the encouraging, "right" things to say to someone else, but when it's me I just plain don't like them. 

This weekend I had to say goodbye to one of my very favorite friends.  It's not a final goodbye by any means, but we are shifting, again, into a long-distance relationship.

Debbie and I met way back in the 3rd grade (Beth's age!!).  When we first met, as I recall, it wasn't love at first sight.  But we became friends and stayed that way, driving each other crazy at some points, drifting at some points, but always coming back to the center, to the friendship.  Her mom and my mom became good friends, close prayer partners.  And Debbie and I continued to grow closer over the years, ultimately she became my sister.

She was with me when each of my 3 babies was born.  She was the photographer, cheerleader, encourager, the comic relief.  And as I became a mom, she became a wonderful auntie.

And, now, a bittersweet answer to prayer has turned her path towards Washington D.C.  She has an exciting, adventurous job awaiting her.  And she is an exciting, adventurous gal, so it's a great fit.

Two weeks ago, Brad began the job of putting down a tile floor in her master bath, getting the place all fit to be a rental for a season.  This weekend, we went back for Brad to finish the floor and me to help pack and load her Pod. 

Here are the floor shots:

day two

day three. who is that cute tile guy?

the final product ~ nicely done, Brad!

And, bless her heart, Debbie has never met a bag, a trinket, a shirt, a letter, or anything that she has not become emotionally attached to.  Not a hoarder, but certainly a hang-on-to-it-er.  So I led her through the steps of saying goodbye to her 8th grade "Ciao" bag that looked every day its age.  We worked ourselves silly, and it was a joy to give her that parting gift.  We laughed a lot.  We cried a lot.

Here are the packing shots:

this is the empty pod, when we arrived in the morning

Deb explaining to Mary why she "needed" to keep something

an example of something she "needs" to keep

the pod when we left: it has since been re-shuffled and added to

The goodbyes:

Deb & Alex

This is what two exhausted gals look like when they've been crying and hugging goodbye

GREAT stuff ahead for Debbie, I'm sure of it.  Just the next chapter coming up.  But I sure hate those goodbyes.  Even though I know it's a "See ya soon".