A Major Move

After almost 35 years in a house I loved, I've moved to a senior community seven miles away. It wasn't a spur-of-the-moment decision. My husband and I had been on the waiting list for five years as the new development was being built.  Periodic meetings with updates kept us excited and interested. So many amenities! We could hardly wait. Although we're both in good health and active, we wanted to make a decision for our future before a possible health crisis forced us to make one. This seemed like the perfect choice. We would live independently in our own "garden terrace" condo, but would have long term care available if we ever needed it.

Still, when the time came to actually move, the fantasy became a reality, and the transition wasn't easy. Locking the door behind me in the home we were leaving brought tears to my eyes. As I scanned the empty rooms, years of memories danced before me. The first night in our new place, surrounded by packing boxes, I wondered if we'd made a mistake. As we slowly settled into our new home, smaller and single story, and began to meet our new neighbors, we started to feel comfortable. Now, a few weeks into our new environment, it feels like home. Talking to other residents, also scaling down, we learned they all had the same twinge of sadness during their transition from a familiar place to a new one. Yet, we all feel we made the right decision. Change isn't easy, even when you have planned for it. One thing we're certain of now, we'll never move again!