there and back again

The kids and I are leaving England in just a few days.  T.J. will stay for a couple more weeks to finish up work and then we'll begin our next adventure together as a family in South Carolina. Over our last weekend we squeezed in one more cathedral and said goodbye to friends. We took a last frosty stroll counting sheep and keeping our eyes open for pheasant. We enjoyed one last Sunday roast.  There will be a last meal cooked in our borrowed kitchen, a last cappuccino or two at the cafe I love around the corner and dinners are booked at our favourite spots for our last nights in town. Suitcases are out and starting to be filled (overfilled). I'm stocking up on custard creams and chocolate digestives and my favourite sweets to bring back as well and boxes of the things we've accumulated that won't fit have been mailed on ahead.  This wild hare of an adventure that we started dreaming up in an apartment in South Korea 4 years ago is almost come and gone. 
I worried when we first arrived in Cambridge that I wouldn't want to leave. That going back would feel like a step back, that settling down would feel like settling.  And while it is the end of one dream, it's also the start of a new one. And I'm ready! 

Ready to be a part of a community not just passing through.  Ready to be known and not always the new girl. Ready to have a home that will see more than one year of family birthdays. Ready to make traditions, pick paint colours, plant a garden and still be in town for the harvest. I want to see the same hairdresser more than once. 
Having lived "everywhere" for the first decade of our marriage, now we're going to try something new. What is maybe the expected path, is actually the one most foreign to me. The one that has us living in the same town as my parents for the first time since I was 18 years old. Funnily enough I'm making a similar trip this week to the one 18 year old Shannon took when she left home for the first time all those years ago. I'm leaving England, again, for South Carolina. My dad will even be with me again, graciously doing a quick turn around flight to help carry bags and make sure I don't lose my boarding pass or my sanity.

It's amazing that something like choosing where to go to college, and all the choices and decisions since have brought me round the world and back again. What a gift to be able to return to England with my husband, to see it again as a mother to three children of my own, to experience it for a second time with all the perspective and wisdom (maybe) that I didn't have at 18. 

We actually did it! We chose to make our life a bit chaotic but a lot more romantic and forever altered.  I know that we'll carry that with us too, long after the suitcases are finally unpacked, the passports are put away and the photographs are framed to remind us of this rare season in our family's story.

England called me back, and now South Carolina is calling us home. 

Comments

  1. As is your way, Shannon, this post is beautifully written. I especially enjoyed the paragraph that started out with, "Ready to be a part of a community ..." and ending with "I want to see the same hairdresser more than once." (smile) You, your mom, and your sister have such a wonderful gift for expressing what the rest of us may be thinking but just can't seem to articulate as well as you do. How thoughtful and generous of your dad to fly over only to turn around and help usher you and the children back to the states. That will be such a practical help!

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  2. Sob. It's all so bittersweet. Wonderful and heart wrenching both. We can't wait for the next new chapter xo

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  3. You really have made the most of your time in England but now it's time for a new chapter and it's definitely going to be an exciting one. Putting down roots with your family, near your family will bring its own challenges but you are ready! Safe travels home.

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  4. It sounds like such a beautiful adventure for you and your family that you have had, but so exciting to hear you are planting roots in South Carolina near your parents. I am sure your kids will love that too! I hope the move goes well & how kind for your dad to come with you. Have fun picking out the new paint colors you will get to enjoy a little longer this time :).

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  5. What a grand adventure you've had over these 10 years. I bet the adventure will continue on for you and the family and for your parents too. Praying you will have a safe trip back to the US with your dad and kids and blessings on getting set up in South Carolina!

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  6. Awwww!!! Welcome home! What experiences you were given and passed on to your boys. I love your sense of adventure that your parents gave you. And I know they're THRILLED to have you so close!

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  7. Shannon, I love reading your blog. I am excited for you and your family. Sending prayers and hugs, Carla

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  8. "Plant a garden and be around for the harvest," YES!! Lovely pictures and I can scarcely imagine all the memories you've made- hopefully you'll have them forever (all the pictures will help!). I can see how you are excited about the next chapter in your life where you will be close to family.

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