March 2018

Actually this is what I know at the end of March, having only the journal I was working on when we left.

At the end of March, our place was stacked with furniture that had yet to be picked up, going to a friend and all of the items going into the Oregon storage. In addition were some items being delivered along the way to people; two bicycles, a rowing machine, several bags containing personal items and books.

It was getting really messy. We were having a terrible time keeping up with our French language tutor and feared that we were a constant source of disappointment. We had added several things to our to do list, like updating our mobile phones, purchasing Sim cards for overseas, updating friends’ numbers, addresses and many more too numerous to mention.

I took apart the front porch lighting we had added, some decorations and chairs. It made me very sad; one of those pinpoints of where my mind caught up with the consequences of our decision to leave. It was a physical dismantlement of something which was our creation, which greeted guests with our tone and style. Something that made us smile every time we came home.

I would write every day in my journal, many times to just clear my mind of the countless details still to be addressed. We went to our two favorite restaurants to say goodbye; I gave away the last of my art supplies which also became a pin point of consequence recognition; we had our last medical appointments and tested FaceTime with people to ensure we knew how to work it.

The month was a constant stream of weeding, consignment shop and charity drop-offs, in addition to the every day living chores of laundry, grocery shopping and bill paying. Before we could sneeze, the month closed.