A Man's Home is His Castle, No Matter the Season



The earth is now covered with the colorful remains of Autumn's glory. And tiny birds, feathers ruffled by frigid, early winter winds, have packed their bags and headed for sunny islands beyond the coast of Florida.



Autumn leaves have fallen,
carpeting the grass with their glory.

Bill and I, along with our two little pups, are bundled up properly here in North Carolina. We're ready for the winter which has unofficially begun. The temperature at our house has been hovering under 35 degrees for three days now, and from the parking lot down the street, I can see snow on the mountain tops. Fortunately, we like the change of the seasons.

And meanwhile, like the changing seasons of the earth, the life my husband and I share is entering into a new season. A change that is overdue. We've found an apartment in Charlotte, just down the street from Bill's work; all bottom level, with a large kitchen, a nice master bedroom, a studio for moi, as well as a place for the doggies to lay in the sun. This will be our work-week abode, and we'll head home to Hickory for the weekends. Because Bill and I aren't yet ready to let go of our house of 22 years, with its memories, tradition, kid-friendly creek, and picket fenced garden of old roses and herbs. 

Castles are everwhere I look in Charlotte!
This one was across the street from the hotel we stayed in
when we went to a Panther's game a few weeks ago.



We've resisted any move to Charlotte for 20 years now, because of our large family. Housing for a family of ten is a costly persuit in Charlotte as compared to Hickory. As a result, Bill has driven back and forth for a total of 156 work weeks, 40 hours each. Yep, that's the equivalent of three years of driving with 40 hour weeks. (This is how Bill thinks!) Let's see on my little calculator here...that's 40 hours x 52 weeks x 3.  Have I figured that right? I can't look.

Now we're going to have two extra hours to spend together every single day. Let's see...that's 2 x 5 x 52 = 520 more hours in one year, or 13 work weeks more time togehter just in the first year alone! Something like that, anyway. Wow! 

Like life, the tides come and go,

one over another, never ceasing.



As they say, my friend, this is life; it's ebb and flow like waves in the ocean's surf. One wave recedes and another begins over the first. Then another and another and another.

We don't know how this new adventure is going to go, but we're looking forward to it. And we're taking it on together. As we promised we would do many years ago, in a little church in my home town.


It brings these three words to mind: God is good.