~upon the saying of farewell~

Good morning everyone, a very early "good morning" actually from here in south central Kansas.  It's 4:16 in the a.m. and I guess some habits are gonna have to die hard.  Having gotten up at this time for years and years now and with the anticipation of moving away today, well I guess it was bound to happen.  We got to bed quite late last evening, perhaps much later than we should have, but we had the best last day in Kansas that we could possibly have hoped for.  For that, I give thanks.... a whole bunch of them in fact.

Even though I told myself that I'd not write in this blog again until I was settled with Mike in Colorado, I am taking a moment this morning to talk out my thoughts.  You know, I've been filled with every emotion you could have imagined in the last 24 hours.  From extremely happy to moments of deep sadness, from full of energy to "so, THIS is what they mean by dead tired"~I have felt a bunch of them.  

In 3 hours I will be leaving the place that I have called "home" for all of my days and when I see the sign at the western border of the Sunflower State that says "Leaving Kansas", well then it will be "for real".   What a fool I would be to tell you that it won't bother me, that it won't make me feel sad because I know that will indeed be the case.  Mike knows my feelings, in fact sometimes I think he already knows "me" better than I know myself :)  He will help me get through the rough spots and for that I am grateful.  

At our wedding this past Tuesday, two of my students were readers of the scripture verse from 1st Corinthians~the verse about love from the "Good Book".  Matt and Emma, a couple of my reading students, have been special to me this year and it meant so much to me that they would be a part of this all.  Just before they went in to the gymnasium ahead of Mike and I, I looked at them both with tears in my eyes.  What a gift they were to me in my life.  I gazed down at each of them, one at a time, and put my hands upon their face.  I said to both of them the very same thing and I will always remember the words that I spoke.....  "You are very special to me and there is nothing that you could do that would ever make me change my mind about you.  I love you very much and you will ALWAYS be a part of my life.  I will carry you in my heart forever."  As I gave them a hug and a kiss, I made a memory in my heart.

Friends and family~the same I say to each of you.  "You are very special to me and I can't think of anything that could happen that would ever change the way I feel about you right now at this moment in time.  I will always love you guys, no matter what, and moving 611 miles westward on Highway 50 will not change my feelings , EVER.  If you were here standing alongside me this morning, I would put my hands on your faces and look you in the eyes and feel the very same thing as I felt with those two young people, now 3 days back.  You are precious gifts to me, blessings that I've been afforded by the very God that me and all of you as well.  I will not forget you~please don't forget me.

Well, it's time to start rousting people about.  It's just me and old Oblio the roundhead that are up and going.  Mike and Grahame are still sleeping away and by the clock on the wall, it would appear that the time is at hand.  I'm glad that I got up and wrote this~I felt a little sad when I woke up an hour ago but you know what?  I feel a little better now.  There will be days like this in the future but one thing is for sure....it gets better :)  

Please friends and family, take good care of yourselves.  Make time for yourself and one another and above all else, be at peace with life.  For the first time in forever, I am at peace with mine.  When the day is done, I will lay my head on the pillow in a beautiful place called Montrose, Colorado with a wonderful man, my husband, lying right next to me.  I thank God every day for the gift, the blessing of a brand new life with a man that I dearly love.  

This is Friday, the 24th day of May, 2013....a great day to be alive in.  I plan to do as the "Good Book" would admonish us all.  I will rejoice and be so very glad in it!  Love you guys, one and all.  

It's a blessing to have so many new family members. This is some of us last evening over at Valley Center~This ever "shrinking world" is a very small place.  When I lived at Valley Center last year, I was only 3 blocks away from the good people that were destined to become a huge part of my life.  All in God's "good time", my destiny was shown to me.

To the little town from "long ago and far, far away"-Haven, Kansas, thank you from those two kids shown above.  We are mighty beholden to you.  Without that little place, we would have never met.