Reflection

What an unbelievable week. I knew we would be busy and I knew this would be hard, but this has been a extremely overwhelming - even for me! 

Our lovely trip to Windsor was followed by a great few days in Cuba - fabulous friends, fabulous wedding, very interesting experiences! And then a whirlwind tour of Ottawa which, sadly, was largely enveloped by packing chaos, but still encompassed a few great visits.  Amidst the great visits and experiences, my reflections of the week are overtaken by melancholy and memories of extreme anxiety and stress.  

Our carefully planned and organized move on Friday and Saturday really went sideways before slowly falling into place.  Saying good bye was terrible. It was emotionally draining and heart-wrenching and far too many times I was brought to tears knowing what amazing family and friends we are moving further from. Tragically, a huge number of factors led us to canceling a night with friends in Ottawa. It was a horrible decision to have to make, but if I look back on the decision honestly, I don't know if either of us could have handled more good-byes and survived to tell the tale. None of this was helped by Mike getting very sick. 

My story of the last few days could not be told without a HUGE shout out to the amazing, amazing, amazing, amazing friends who have gone above and beyond (and above and beyond) to help out over the past couple of months. Knowing that Mike was being well fed and entertained while I've been away has been very comforting to me, and I am continually amazed by how many invitations continued to come (despite his unchecked behaviour!). Clearly, packing up our home (and finding great new homes for our stuff), could never have happened without your help! So many people volunteered their time to help us pack over the last couple of months, and to patiently take my direction via Skype without any judgement on my irrational attachment to sundried tomatoes, canned peaches and olive oil! The army that moved us from near-breakdown yesterday to confidence we might actually make it out of Ottawa was amazing and unbelievable. And from what I understand, that die-hard commitment to get us out of Ottawa and to help get the house ready for our tenants, has continued unabated.

Thank you.