Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 1

I have been putting off this post for a couple of reasons: #1 I have been insanely busy the last couple of days, tearing through rooms, throwing away trash, carting away usable items to the Kidney Foundation, and trying in vain to remember everything that needs to be done in the next few days before we surrender all of our belongings to the good people of Allied Van Lines; and #2 I am not sure that words can do justice to the festivities that took place on Sunday, when our brothers and sisters at Southwestern feted us before we embark on this new chapter of our lives in Texas. But I do want to share the goings-on with you, so I'll just describe every moment in excruciating detail, okay?!

I suppose it is fitting that I should not have said goodbye to Southwestern without teaching Bible class one last time, so I filled in for Ms. Shirley who has been sick, and I taught Darcy's class on the spur of the moment. This was my "off quarter" and if I had known last quarter that we would be leaving when we are, I would probably have elected to go ahead and teach all the way through. In retrospect, though, I'm glad that I didn't have that responsibility along with homeschooling and everything else I've been consumed with for the last several months (like a job interview, house hunting . . . you know, stuff like that).

Sunday was our regularly scheduled quarterly potluck which coincided with Thanksgiving, so we had an incredible array of holiday dishes from which to choose . . . but I'm getting ahead of myself. First I had to make it through the worship service! It wasn't as difficult as I had anticipated, and I attribute my serenity to the outpouring of encouragement and support we have received from everybody at Southwestern. Everyone has been so understanding of our desire to be closer to family and seems genuinely happy for us, and that has made it infinitely easier for me to deal with the craziness of the last few weeks.

Each Sunday, after Randy offers the invitation and we sing a song, the kids and I typically go ahead of everyone else and prepare to greet people as they are leaving the auditorium, while last-minute announcements are made and a closing prayer is said. My plan was to head straight for the Fellowship Room, where I was going to put the finishing touches on a salad I'd brought before it was set out with the rest of the spread. But just as Randy began wrapping up his sermon, JP Blackwood began making his way down the side aisle and while I wasn't really paying attention to him, something sort of flashed and caught my eye and I realized he was carrying a gift bag. Oh, man.

Okay, some of you may not believe this (even though I think I've said it often enough), but I hate being in the spotlight. Or at least, the old me hated being in the spotlight. Now don't get me wrong--it's not like I've changed and suddenly I'm going to audition for American Idol; no, I just mean that for years I have suffered from something close to debilitating shyness, to the extent that if the old me had known we were going to have to get up in front of the congregation, I can guarantee you I would have had some "gastrointestinal distress" the night before. But time and practice seem to have helped me conquer the jitters that used to come with the territory.

I say all that because when I saw the flash of glittery ribbon on the gift bag that JP was holding, I realized that words were going to be spoken, words about us, and not just at the relaxed, informal gathering we call a potluck, but right there in front of the whole church. Hoo-boy. You know what, though? It wasn't so bad. I don't even remember feeling nervous. Progress, people! I couldn't really bring myself to scan the audience, but I made eye contact with a few key people and basically just focused on what was being said. Audry, on behalf of the elders, presented us with a new digital camera which Peyton dropped (and which was replacing the one I dropped on Sawyer's birthday, which they wouldn't have known about if a little birdie named Grandma Phyllis hadn't whispered in their ears!) and I wish I could have whipped it out right then and recorded the rest of the proceedings. Sawyer was in fine form, as usual--seriously, he was so funny--he followed everyone's lead pretty well and just stood there with Darcy's arm around his shoulder, or he would alternately hug Peyton or Tyler, but the highlight was probably when he turned around to me (I was standing behind the kids), pulled his sweater up to his chin and stuck out his belly. Yep, that's Sawyer. I heard quite a few giggles even though nobody in the audience was treated to the full view!

Next, JP had a little presentation of his own. He is a "techno-geek" (I believe that is the preferred term) who loves gadgets, especially high-tech ones, and he gave Randy what he called a "digital plaque" but what is really a digital picture frame. He pre-loaded it with photos of lots of folks from Southwestern (although I must say, Cooper Blackwood features prominently in a lot of the photos, and that is OKAY by me!) and had it up and running during the potluck. Speaking of which, come back later for Part 2 of the saga . . .