Bye, Bye House

Friday was the end of a chapter for the Pearce family. My parents closed on the house we had lived in for 50% of my life. Mom and Dad moved to their new house (just a block and a half from my grandparents) in December, but the house was officially no longer ours on January 29th.

I had always teased Dad that he couldn't sell the house until I was married and had a home of my own, and he didn't waste a minute. They put a deposit on a new house near my grandparents while Isaac and I were on our honeymoon.

Since we've had nearly 6 months to get used to the fact that 'home' would no longer be where it had been for 12 years, this week wasn't tragically dramatic for me, but it was still sad. There were so many fun family Christmases, birthday parties, pool parties, and Bible studies held in that house throughout middle school and high school. I could type story after story of humorous and sweet events that have occurred within the four walls of that house. To not be able to walk into those rooms and remember is hard, but memories travel with us. We can all say that home is where your family is, but I think a bit of each of us has an attachment to the place as well.

The worst part about my parents moving is losing the pool. Mom had always, always wanted a pool. We lived in the water growing up. There were very few days during the summer when we weren't Mom's water babies. My freshman year, Dad finally decided to put in Mom's pool. I got to pick out the tile with the dolphins on it, and David made sure there was a hot tub. Granted, Dad was maybe in that pool 5 times in the past 9 years (no joke), but the rest of us adored that plaster pit of water. On hot days, it was bliss! On the cold evenings when bones hurt from the weather, it warmed us up, at least until time to run back inside! It gave us a reason to invite friends over, have shrimp boils, and host parties (this goes back to my hospitality side). Mom and I would float for hours and read books. That pool always seemed like God's little piece of paradise tucked in the corner of our little lot, away from whatever else was happening in the world. And, I planted this tiny, $2 hibiscus in the corner of the plant bed by the garage when I was in 8th grade. It is now a 10 foot giant with more blooms than can be counted. I'm going to miss those pink beauties!

On Thursday night, Isaac asked if I needed to go tell the house 'bye' one last time. At first, I said I was fine. After being in bed for about 10 minutes, I asked if he'd still take me. Being the sweet husband he is, he popped up, grabbed his shoes and the car keys, and took me the three minute drive to the old house one last time. Isaac let me inside, and I simply wandered from room to room, opening all of the closet doors, and praying for the new family that would soon be living in them (they are actually acquaintances from church...another answer to prayer). When I made it back down stairs, the tears started. Isaac just let me cry, and then distracted me by asking for favorite memories from different rooms. He's so sensitive to my needs and knows how to help me through it! After about 30 minutes, we left, and I knew the chapter in that house was closed. I have a peace that we'll all be moving on, that Mom is going to make her new house feel like her home soon, and that I'll find a place to go swimming this summer. Change is never easy, and usually not fun, but God knows how to lead us, and so on we follow, trusting Him that the best is yet to come when we finally reach our forever Home.