day 213: wet northwest

In three weeks we will  take our son to the Missionary Training Center and leave straight for Seattle.  I mean, we won't go home from the MTC.  We will keep heading north until we reach Boise, where we will stay in a hotel.  I will cry a bit.  I will enjoy the younger two kids and my husband, and then I will cry.


Crying somewhere besides home will be nice.  I will feel cleaned out, both by the feelings and by the trip, and it will be cathartic.  See, #2 will be leaving right in the middle of Spring break, after a hellish few weeks for me at work and school.  I will be exhausted and emotionally spent, and walking past his bedroom might break me.  In half.

So, I will do my initial adjusting while walking on the wharf and watching funny men throw fish at Pike's Market.  I will think of my boy while I eat good food and wake up in the beautiful home of my close friend who is a recent transplant to Seattle.

On the ferry to Bainbridge Island I will remember the time we ferried out of Boston Harbor in 2007 before #1 left us.  And I will be nostalgic.  But not for long.  Because this has been in the works for 19 years.  Because I have known this day was coming.  Because I owe Him.

And then I will smile and say a prayer.  And it will be right.

10 comments

LisAway | March 20, 2010 at 1:20 AM

Seattle seems like the perfect place to cry. I love crying in the rain (or in the shower if it's not raining). Love the idea of being NOT HOME when the emptiness is new. And I can't believe it's coming so fast!

Dona | March 20, 2010 at 1:49 AM

Three weeks. Wow.

Connie | March 20, 2010 at 6:56 AM

It's good to plan...your trip, your sorrow, your healing.

Anonymous | March 20, 2010 at 8:56 AM

My husband used to live on Bainbridge Island. :)

I hope that when my children are growing up and leaving home I will have the same strength of spirit as you have. :)

Rachel Cotterill | March 20, 2010 at 1:04 PM

I can feel your ambivalence in your words - all the good stuff on the one hand, but it must still be a wrench.

PS love the panorama! :)

Jenny | March 20, 2010 at 5:00 PM

Great plan, will keep this in mind when I am getting ready to take my son the MTC in January.

Joanie | March 20, 2010 at 8:15 PM

Sounds like a great idea. A good time for a little get away.

Luann | March 21, 2010 at 6:53 PM

We had tentative plans to go to Washington for spring break, too. But we decided we can't afford it. Enjoy it enough for me too. You've earned it!

Unknown | March 21, 2010 at 10:32 PM

I never understood the meaning of the word "bittersweet" until I took a son to the MTC. Now I get it.

And, oh! How I love Seattle! Does your friend live on Bainbridge Island? What a neat place! We lived on Mercer Island for 7 years, so give my old friends a wave as you pass through on I-90!

Pose with the pig at Pike's Place. It's a must-do.

Kimberly Vanderhorst | March 23, 2010 at 4:21 PM

As Denae said, bittersweet indeed. This post shows off your beautiful heart...well...beautifully.

And Seattle can be a truly wondrous place. I used to live ten minutes from there and not for nearly long enough.