Day 3 – Still waiting for Laundry to Dry

As I write this, I am sitting on my front porch, watching Mike push the boys on a home made tree swing.  The last three days are somewhat of a blur, will write more when I can sort out the last 72 hours.

No rain yet today, which allowed us to finally dry some clothes.  After a lesson in operating the washing machine, it ain’t no MayTag .  It is a cross between what we consider to be a washing machine and taking your clothes to the river and beating them on a rock.  Once figured out, the window of sunlight was highly unpredictable.  As the rains came, our laundry laiden  lines were no match for the weather. – they snapped in two and our laundry was strewn all over the yard.  The hopes for dry clothes were done for the day due to the weather and no prospects for a new clothes line at the grocery store, hardware store or in our home.  However, the next day, after dodging a tarantula, a cane toad, two dogs that we’ve adopted and a beatle the size of my fist, we spied some cable hanging in a tree and were able to retrieve it and fashion a much sturdier line, now all we needed was the sun to shine…and shine it did today…it was a beautiful day.

Signed:  S

We Have Arrived

We arrived here in Monteverde yesterday afternoon. I will avoid the details of the last several days except to say that it has been a whirlwind of transitions. The boys are settling into the 'little brown house' exploring its nooks and crannies and spending time swinging on the tree rope, helping the 15 month old neighbor girl, and discovering critters. We just visited the school, and I am hanging back typing this while Sally, Beth and the boys get a head start walking home. The hike will be a little soggy due to an afternoon downpour after a bright sunny day, temps are 70ish F day and 50's at night. 

There have been many adjustments and many more to come because this is not Clarendon Hills. 

Peace and pics to follow soon.

Say Hello & Wave Goodbye

This past weekend was very telling of what is to come as we visited with neighbors, were surprised by old friends dropping by to bid us farewell, the continued generosity of our neighbors and family members packing, cleaning and playing with the kids.  As I write this while the household sleeps, it is the first time that the 'end' and the 'beginning' (for me) converge into these last few days of transition.  Will it be the HELLO and the integration into our new life that will be what keeps me awake these last few days or will it be the GOODBYES that we impart to our friends and family?  Likely both will be emotionally taxing.  We have been so blessed to have the support of friends and family as we embark on this journey.  I for one, will miss my dear friend, my sister Beth, who has been my rock as I weathered through some tough times.  For the last five years we have lived on the same block where we have established many rituals...the most significant being the Sunday night "mooch a meal" (as she calls it).  ...clearly this will be a tough goodbye.  However, I can prolong that one a little longer since she is flying down with us for a week to help us settle in. We are thankful for her extra hands and her open heart.  

So many parties and impromptu gatherings over the last several weeks.  Many belly laughs with my family as they visited from North Carolina and Florida earlier this month and a wonderful 'shindig' hosted by Mike's clan a couple of weeks ago.  We enjoyed our family who traveled in from Minnesota for the event.  I will miss Mike's family tremendously - imagine marrying into a family of 10 kids.  I am a very blessed daughter-in-law, aunt, sister-in-law to have a fantastic extended family who cares and nurtures me as one of their own!  It is these connections and relationships that we cherish and will take with us as we head South.  

For me, these emotions are still under the layers of exhaustion as we pack and prepare into the early morning hours, the anticipation, excitement, anxiety - no doubt they will bubble up to the surface as I stare at my empty house later today and lay my weary body down on an air mattress later tonight.

I will think of it as HASTA LUEGO for now and leave the Goodbyes for another time.

Signed: S  

Countdown: Hours

24 Hours: Movers transporting our remaining items to storage

48 Hours: Enjoying our final breakfast in The Little Green House 

72 Hours: Looking out small window at 37,000 feet high, 600 mph heading south

96 Hours: Driving up mountain to Monteverde

120 Hours: Waking to our first sunrise in new home

To Purge, To Liberate

Tremendous purge and pack progress has been made these past few days in the little green house. Many smiling drivers with van loads, car loads, or wagon loads of things have rolled away from our house. It has been a win-win as we would much rather have our things be put to good use than sit in a lonely storage room. The whole move would be much different if we were throwing things in boxes to be unpacked in a different home next week. We are taking only suitcases to CR and storing our remaining possessions while the move date approaches. So, more thoughts on stuff: Our things have consumed us! They bring pleasure to our minds and bodies. They trigger memories, they can be manipulated, they help us connect with others, they help us prepare and serve food, they keep us warm and dry, they teach and entertain us and help keep us sane. Things might also distract us.

The purge process is resulting in a greater awareness of my strong connection with some physical things and causes me to reflect on how I might better spend my energies. It is easy to become complacent about important relational and social issues when a few possessions become a priority. Unfortunately, as I mentioned recently, 80% of my time is consumed with making decisions about physical objects but fortunately, the quantity of stuff in our personal possession is being reduced. If I attempt to prevent possessions from possessing me, I must learn to detach from them. We are learning more about detachment from possessions these days and it feels LIBERATING! We continually question why we haven't purged to this extent before or how did we possibly accumulate an Amvets trailer worth of give-aways that we now do not miss. We often hear someone say 'you can't take it with you', well that is almost our situation, unless we are willing to spend a chunk of cash to ship things to Costa Rica. 

The egocentric mind of a three year has a different view of things, but this transition has been a growing experience for our children as well. We explain that many of our clothes and toys have been given to us through the generosity of others and now it is our turn to pass them on to someone else who can use them. They understand that we are taking turns using things and it soon will be time for another family to live in the little green house and ride bikes on the sidewalk. They know that someone else will enjoy the yellow picnic chairs, swimming pool and small yellow car with the orange bottom. Surprisingly, they are usually OK with it, but if you have experience with preschoolers, you know their giving attitude can change with the wind. 

Its another late night, past midnight now and tomorrow will come with more stretching.

Signed M

Responding To Nature

During my first visit to the school in Monteverde this April, I asked a student if she could assist us with something. She responded in a matter-of-fact manner, "Sure, as soon as someone moves that scorpion." Looking down, the four inch arthropod was barely crawling near my shoe. The poor creature looked injured as if someone had inadvertently stepped on. Being my first experience with a scorpion, I allowed another teacher to simply scoop up the visitor with a piece of cardboard and toss it outside. I learned that scorpions in Costa Rica can cause a painful sting, similar to the sting of a wasp, but one should not be too concerned about them unless they have an allergic reaction to the venom. Hmmm, how do I find out if I am allergic? There are two ways - the safer one is to visit an allergist MD. 

All kidding aside, our boys are extremely curious about anything that moves or might move. In addition to observing animal visitors in the garden, they are especially enthusiastic to touch crawling things and on several occasions we have seen worms, cicadas, slugs and ants crawling on their three year old bodies. I encourage their interactions with the natural environment, but our yard in Costa Rica will have a greater variety of life than we see here in the suburbs, and us humans will be the visitors. Fortunately, little humans have an immense ability to respect wildlife and to learn safety procedures. Stay tuned for an update on our spider handling and snake training. Signed M 

Countdown: One More Week

A slight sense of urgency is felt in my gut. How will we get it all done in the next week? Movers arrive monday and we fly out on wednesday. Packing, documentation, charging our new walkie talkies, deciding which teaching materials and clothes to bring, and sharing hugs and final laughs with everyone. Fortunately, the boys spend creative hours inside with boxes and outside chasing each other and throwing dirt balls. They know that thing will be different in Costa Rica and they are excited about looking for new critters there. The new non-commuting Sally is sharing her energy with the boys while helping maintain balance within the household these days. I am still gathering curriculum materials, upgrading computer memory, contemplating the fate of my beer can collection, shopping car rentals in CR, and writing this blog.

Until a few days ago, I experienced the 'Oh my gosh, what are we doing' thought quickly followed by the 'Hey, we're committed now and its going to be a worthwhile adventure' response. Today, it could not feel more right. It is an opportunity that does not come around very often and lets run with it. For the past year, the major lights have been green, the children are becoming increasingly independent, and family and friends are providing tons of support. There have been many reality markers since making the decision to move: making the call to officially accept the position in Costa Rica, moving out the first truckload of furniture, signing the realtor contract, having an open house, signing the purchase agreement, our bedroom set being converted to a mattress on the floor, hearing an echo in the storage room, picnic tables gone, and in the morning, the closing on the sale of our house.  Signed M