Sorry to disappoint any of our beloved fans (I know you’re out there!), but the end of April didn’t prove to be a good time to write a blog… apparently the end of May or June didn’t either. But JULY! July is a different story! Let’s catch up on the buzz of the next 3 months and MAYBE next time I’ll be a little more quick on the blogging uptake… maybe… we’ll see… ;)
If any of you have ever lost a close family member or friend, you will know why the end of April didn’t give me a chance to write a blog. On April 24th, we lost a very good family friend, which resulted in an emergency trip for myself to Oregon for about 10 days to be with my surrogate family, the Brocketts, during their (our) time of mourning and loss of our dear, dear, Cody.
The world will never be complete again without Cody Brockett. We do have the hope of seeing him again, for all eternity. And its that hope that keeps his family and friends going these days.
Have you ever had to jump from a time of mourning to a time of rejoicing very quickly? A week after coming home from Oregon, Frank and I flew from Austin to NYC to celebrate our first anniversary with family and friends on Long Island and Manhattan. It’s weird how life goes on. And it’s even more strange to me how quickly we can adapt from tragedy to celebration. My heart still ached while we were on vacation, but I must admit we had an absolute blast together, visiting with Frank’s cousins on Long Island, seeing the Atlantic Ocean for the first time, eating cannolis and pizza, laughing and resting. It was glorious. On Manhattan, we reveled in true NYC glory, staying on the Upper West Side (I feel slightly cooler not only saying that, but knowing exactly what that means) with Brandon (Corey) & Bess Knox in their cute apartment with a killer view, experiencing what it’s like to order breakfast to the front door, walk to the subway to get anywhere we wanted to be and basically, partying like rock stars. ;) Corey & Bess were excellent hosts! Absolutely cannot wait to visit them again, and be able to return the favor ourselves someday!
Dinner in Little Italy with Corey & Bess.
No sooner had we returned from the big city, when we were faced with some big decisions to make. Frank was applying for manager jobs with FedEx all over the country, but he also found a job posting in Corvallis, Oregon. It was a part time courier position, but with more guaranteed hours per week than he was getting in Austin. And it was in Oregon. And it was in the part of Oregon that we had been praying about living in. And he won the bid for the job. He won the bid. I was in shock (and perhaps, still am a little bit). After a year of trying to get better positions in Austin, he put in for a job in Oregon and POOF! Got it, like magic. We waiting a week or so to hear back on some manager jobs and then realized, this is it. Some manager jobs fell through. One never has replied to his resume. The door was wide open in Corvallis, so we put our little trailer up for sale, packed up a Penske with our meager possessions, hitched up the Katie car and headed to the great Pacific Northwest. (It sounds a lot easier now than it felt over the last few weeks!)
Needless to say, the last 3 months have been a whirlwind for these Bathams. A great loss, a wonderful celebration, (can you believe its been over a year now since we said “we will”?!) and a huge move. Life is rarely comfortable, but thankfully it is tremendously exciting. Sometimes I imagine what it would be like to be comfortable: money in the bank, a beautiful home, two nice cars, no death, no debt and then I think, I would probably be bored to death! ;) I’ll take my transition, my parents’ RV as a roof over our heads (for a couple more weeks), a dented up car that needs her oil changed, and broke as a joke! After all, Life is Good & God is even Greater, no matter what circumstances we find ourselves in.
What’s going on with you? What challenges and joys have you experienced these last few months?
Much Love,
Frank & Alita
