Preparing for the move

My house is almost empty.  The furniture is mostly gone.  The shelves have been emptied and are not where they belong.  The dining room table has found a new home.  Even my chickens have flown the coop.  It's weird because I never thought I would see my home so bare.  But it is part of the plan.

Several months ago my husband asked what I thought if he pursued a job in Japan.  I said "Go for it!  I support you!"  Then came the day that he walked out of the office and said "We're moving to Japan."  And I immediately thought "Oh, shit..."

Moving internationally is a mixed bag of emotions and intensity.  I swing from wahoo to terrified in an instant.  I'm excited to go, but I'm filled with dread about leaving friends and family.  Getting rid of the stuff hasn't been too challenging for me.  Things are things.  But the people... that has hurt so much.  It is scary not knowing when I will see my circle of friends again.  The most heart wrenching thing to watch is my son saying goodbye to his friends.  The only comfort is knowing that we have so many ways to stay connected.

For the past 4 years, we have been the proud owners of a flock of chickens (which soon grew to include ducks and even a rabbit).  Oh, how we are going to miss these pets.  When it came time to say goodbye to our last 4 chickens, my son and I sat on the steps and had a good cry.

No matter how hard the "see you later"s have been, I have persisted.  Focusing on what I can do - purging, organizing, and packing.  There seems to be an endless task list. 

My husband has been working in California for weeks, only coming home on the weekends.  This has been very tough for both my son and me.  We miss him desperately.  So, one thing we are looking forward to with the move is being together all the time. 

Luckily, my husband's new employer has a relocation team that are supporting our move.  They help with all the details - visas, movers, housing.  Of course, they don't help with everything.  It is my responsibility to rent out our house; decide what to take and what to leave behind; and either sell or donate everything we aren't taking.  Slowly, but surely, I'm getting it all done.

Even though our home is almost empty, we are making a list of fun things we will do together in Japan.  We are supporting each other through these hard transitions and rough moments.  And we are looking forward to the adventure ahead.  We just have to get on the plane first!