Last Tuesday the movers came and went. It was all rather anticlimactic. I asked my friend and neighbor Deb to come over around 6:30 when the movers told me they would arrive. Then ended up getting there a bit before 6 and were done by 6:45. Those guys really know how to tape up boxes!! Deb showed up around 6:15 with a very large bottle of wine but missed half of the show.
Then I was left with a house growing emptier by the day. In fact, the night that the movers came, a guy answered a Craig's List ad I placed selling a table and ended up buying two rooms worth of furniture. Craig's List is great, don't get me wrong, but the characters you encounter are priceless. The guy that showed up that Tuesday night came around 10:00 PM and had a U-Haul attached to his SUV. Another sale I made involved two toothless (well, the guy I got a really good look at actually had one large tooth) men carting out my dining room hutch to put into their small Toyota pick up truck.
Then came my 36th birthday. I was in the throws of packing and getting the house ready so we could leave with the assistance of Frank and Jan who stayed from Sunday to Tuesday busting hump to empty the rest of the house, repair every hole I made to hang any picture and to repaint the spackle. I can truly say that I would not have been able to do it without them and even when Larry got home, we almost didn't make it to Tampa Wednesday night.
So a few more words on my birthday. It was one of the most amazing birthdays that I can remember. It started with a phone call from my parents. Every year, they call and sing "Happy Birthday" to me. Unfortunately, it seems that every year, I ended up listening to it on voice mail. This year, I was not working and actually able to answer the phone when they called! They weren't the only ones to call and sing for me. My dear friends Greg and Eduardo Sarnelli called and gave me a barbershop quartet version of "Happy Birthday!" The birthday fun did not stop there...
After running errands for me, Frank and Jan came home with the most decadent chocolate cake. We had lunch of sushi and chocolate cake! Everything was moving along as planned until Jan called up to me from downstairs, "Gayann, I think we have an emergency here..." I went into panic mode thinking that my neighbor's cat who has a habit of entering garages when left open had wandered into the house. I went downstairs to find my very good friend Shellie standing in my living room with her famous lemon cake that she always makes for my birthday. This might not seem special until I tell you that I have not had that lemon cake in about 5 years because Shellie lives in Indialantic, about a 3 hour drive from where Larry and I used to live (sounds odd typing that)!! Shellie took the day off work to drive clear across the state of Florida to see me on my birthday and after about 45 minutes of visiting was on her way back. Tell me that wouldn't make you feel special.
One of the highlights of the day was the gift I received from my sisters, Sally and Suzann. The package arrived some time the week before. I knew when it arrived that I might be home alone on my birthday as Larry was working in St. Louis that Monday, so I decided to wait and open it on my day. It was around lunchtime and I had been so busy running around in the morning that I had not stopped long enough to even think about it, but I saw the package on the shelf and decided it was time. As I write this, I am so sorry that I don't have a picture of the beautiful silver bracelet they sent. In script the bracelet proclaims "Embrace the Journey." When I opened it I about fell out of my chair! This move has brought with it such emotional tumult that it was almost humbling to realize the family support that I have and the love that surrounds me.
This continued into the afternoon when Jan and I went to my last yoga class with my teacher, Mei. She has really been fundamental in my yoga journey, being a regular teacher of mine at least 3 times a week for the last 4 or 5 months. Mei presented to me a journal that had various quotes on the cover about finding yourself, but what was special was the inscription she wrote. The gist of it being that I will always have part of Mei with me and she with me. Thinking about that simple concept brought an awareness to me that I will always carry with me special pieces of my firends and family, and hopefully I have given to them in return special gifts that they will have within them. I was so grateful that day for so many things, one of those being that I actually stopped the inner list making, errand running and house cleaning to actually feel loved, supported and excited for this new chapter.
I know, enough with the existentialism...The move date is upon us!!
Cheers for your journey!
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