Thankfulness #7: Here not There
There are days when I feel trapped in this house. The walls start closing in and I go a bit loopy. My patience runs out and sadly my children receive a very tired, a very ungrateful, a very discontent mother. Not good. Then I bemoan my location. Why am I here? I miss my family like crazy! If only my husband got a job near my old city. Life would have been easier...
Then I realize: life may have not been easier.
Last year, one of the jobs my husband applied for was in a small town about 100 km from our previous city. He landed an interview for the position. Since the school was quite minute in size, his teaching assignment promised to be vast. In other words, my husband would be the math and science department. We started to look at housing possibilities in a town about 30 minutes out of the city. The prospects were bleak, and not much cheaper than the city. Nonetheless, the job was tantalizing, for me anyway. Family was still near. My favorite grocery store was close. All my essential services were a drive away.
But my husband's teaching life would be dismal. Hours of preparation for too many classes, treacherous winter driving, and questionable job security (we wondered about the school's future) threatened to be his future. The stress on our family life would increase. We'd probably have to purchase a second vehicle, an expense that we really can't afford, so I could make all my trips into the city. And since we would be close to family, our obligations would remain the same. Thus, even though some things remained the same, our lives would have changed for the worse!
All of this is to say that I am thankful that we are here, not there. Our family life is much more healthy. Our financial stresses are manageable. And even though I miss my family, they are only about a 3 hour drive away. That's not too bad at all.
Then I realize: life may have not been easier.
Last year, one of the jobs my husband applied for was in a small town about 100 km from our previous city. He landed an interview for the position. Since the school was quite minute in size, his teaching assignment promised to be vast. In other words, my husband would be the math and science department. We started to look at housing possibilities in a town about 30 minutes out of the city. The prospects were bleak, and not much cheaper than the city. Nonetheless, the job was tantalizing, for me anyway. Family was still near. My favorite grocery store was close. All my essential services were a drive away.
But my husband's teaching life would be dismal. Hours of preparation for too many classes, treacherous winter driving, and questionable job security (we wondered about the school's future) threatened to be his future. The stress on our family life would increase. We'd probably have to purchase a second vehicle, an expense that we really can't afford, so I could make all my trips into the city. And since we would be close to family, our obligations would remain the same. Thus, even though some things remained the same, our lives would have changed for the worse!
All of this is to say that I am thankful that we are here, not there. Our family life is much more healthy. Our financial stresses are manageable. And even though I miss my family, they are only about a 3 hour drive away. That's not too bad at all.
