Last Monday evening I threw myself a little victory party; I had just completed boxing up our kitchen, which meant everything was packed to be shipped up to Nunavut for our grand adventure which was to begin in July. All that was left was the bedding and the toys, but I wanted to wait until the night before the movers came to pack these critical items. This was a huge job! I spent all of April sorting, packing, purging and giving away items we no longer needed, and now that it was done, I was itching to get on with the next phase of our life.
I texted Mr. Level-Headed each morning wondering if he had, in fact, received the go-ahead from his boss to book the movers. We only had one more week left if we wanted to get our stuff on the first sea-lift of the season, but unfortunately, the new president of Derrick's company seemed uncomfortable with making final decisions. He kept putting it off and assuring Derrick that he was simply finalizing the details of our move.
By Thursday afternoon, I was getting anxious:
Have you talked to David today?
No reply.
An hour later, Mr. Level-Headed responded to my text:
Yes, I did. My job was terminated.
And just like that, it was over.
We are not moving to Nunavut.The boys will not be riding a Ski-doo to school. The babies and I will not be working in the local library. Mr. Level-Headed is home. We do not have a job, and we have no idea what is next.
And why do we no longer have a job? Well, it all comes down to a local election and Mr. Level-Headed being on the losing side, which was drawn upon lines he did not even realize were there - small town politics at your best.
Anyhoo . . .
So, here we are, and to tell you the truth, I am heart-broken. Sure, I am a bit relieved that I do not have to move to the land of perpetual winter, or say goodbye to friends and family, but I am sad. Mr. Level-Headed loved his job! He was excited about the work he was doing, and he grew very fond of the community he has lived in for the past six months. I feel terrible for him.
I am also sad because, as crazy as it sounds, I was really looking forward to moving to Rankin. I wanted to learn how to drive an ATV. I wanted to see the Northern Lights. I wanted my boys to learn how to hunt caribou and carve knives. I wanted to experience what twenty-two hours of sunlight feels like. I wanted to experience something new and something different. I wanted an adventure.
Life is crazy! Like I told the kids, the only thing you can hope for in this life is a chance to breathe in between dodging all the curve balls it throws your way, and the only way you will survive is by being thankful for what you do have. Right now, my entire family is together under one roof. Mr. Level-Headed was given a good severance package, so we should be okay until he finds another job, and Zoe is healthy. In all honesty, life is pretty good right now and I am guessing that this is my time to take a couple deep breaths and prepare myself for whatever is coming up next . . .
Like unpacking all those boxes . . . ugh!
God sure has a strange sense of humour . . . tee hee!
And for no other reason than she is adorable and she brightens my day, here is little Miss Harriet:
Yeah, I think we are going to be just fine.
