January 5, 2012 Greeting My Friend, We are headed back to VA after a couple of weeks in the Redford house in MI. It has been hard work for us. Neither one of us can do what we once did as quickly. Junior spent a day or so falling asleep because he over did himself. I too had my struggles doing simple tasks. For me though I’ve done more than I have done in recent years. Still I found myself painting a doorway and feeling exhausted. I finally asked Junior to finish the doorway up I was half done with it. Still I was able to do some painting, some cleaning counter tops and putting things outside the truck to take back. That is my job. I line up the stuff either inside or by the car and let Junior pack. He likes that job and I like getting things ready. It works. Our leave time was rather late in the afternoon. It is a 10 hour drive. More than likely we will drive for several hours and spend the night and finish our journey tomorrow. We got a lot done in the house. The house has been rented for a higher price. The last 3 years we kicked in $50 each month which paid the property management fee. It worked. At this point the rent will cover the whole house payment and the property management fee. We may even realize a small profit. We hope that when this renter leaves and they do sign a year’s lease that we can sell the house and at least break even. For the last few years we have been upside down where we owe more than the house is worth…..breaking even would be nice. God has provided a stable renter and we’ve had the house payment made for the most part. More prayers have gone up asking that this renter will be timely and make her payments. That is why I am so happy to let a company interview the renters, collect the rent and assist them if needed. Leaving has been a huge chore this time. We had borrowed some things from an old neighbor. When we returned them he noticed the tires were low and started filling them with air. Junior needed to put oil in the engine and he swapped out mirrors so he could see well while he drove. It was a good 5:00 before we left. Then we stopped at McDonald’s for dinner and Home Depot to return some things we bought and then did not use. It was 6:00 before we were headed home. Our drive is a good 10 hour drive back to VA. More than likely we will travel several hours and then rent a room for the night finishing our journey tomorrow. I have found that I am missing our VA home a lot. I miss wandering around each room. I miss the pets. I miss the views a ton. I do believe that in my heart I have made this home a home in my heart. As we stayed at the Redford house I found it felt very familiar but my heart longed to be in VA. I have fully made the transition in my heart. It feels wonderful. The Redford house was where for the most part Junior and I started life together. The house worked when we were both working and it was close to the church we went to. Then we moved to VA and a new phase of our life has begun. It has been wonderful and we have had moments where I wondered about this move. Overall though we love what we have been given. We feel God has led us and directed us and the contentment level is astonishing to me. We are 10 hours away from our family which can be hard. Still we can visit as we travel back to MI. We tend to go back to the dentist in MI 3 times a year which means we are there at least 3 times. At first I was not so sure about moving so far away. We felt God told us to move and we did. Frankly I am amazed at how content I feel out in VA. I love the mountains, the forests and my walks. Our drives are always beautiful wherever we go. I feel a great sense of peace and contentment now. It is where I need to be. If someone would have told me that I was going to be content living in the country I would not have believed them. I am as content as I have ever been. It is a marvelous feeling to tell you the truth. As I grapple with health issues, family issues and getting older I find the mountains to be a soothing balm for me. I am able to not be over focused on my struggles and I love soaking up the mountains and trees and the people themselves. Life is slower out here and the rush found in suburban living is not as crazy. People in the mountains tend to be more accepting of behavior that is not the norm as well. That feels nice. As I have slowed down my ADD ways have come out big time. When I was younger my ADD ways were not as noticeable because I could be over involved and I was stretched enough to not realize I was ADD. The ones in my life at the time that were ADD were way more ADD than I and I did not realize I was ADD. My body has slowed way down and I find that my mind is going faster than my body can these days which can be a huge struggle for me. I even have a supplement that will help me focus better. I went off of it for a few days and Junior asked me to get back on it. We did not realize how much it was helping me. So we head home after another visit. Being in our old house has told me that the house was perfect when we were working. Now though the new home makes more sense. The weather in VA is a tad bit warmer maybe 5-10 degrees. Winters have been a huge struggle for me through the years and here in VA the average winter temperature is 40 degrees. Summers generally aren’t that hot. We are 10 hours from the ocean so the humidity isn’t bad. As I find myself contemplating our new state and home I know deep inside of me we are where we need to be. It feels that good. May God bless you and keep you, make His face to shine upon you. Love Janet