Life is happening.

So, my adventure to graduate school, Macomb and the United States is happening. Like, on the realsies, it is happening. I am beginning to finally wrap my head around this big and exciting change but there is a word that has been lingering in my mind for the last couple of weeks. Avoidance.

Don’t worry, this is not about to get sappy-on the contrary I hope it gives y’all some giggles as this whole experience has done for me. I have had a lot of people ask me recently “have you started packing?” And my answer has remained the same up until yesterday…  “nope!” (as I grin widely in my nonchalant way that I see as being charming but could actually be quite annoying).  With those questions, came the realization that I had been avoiding these preparations for some time. So why? There are definitely a couple options.  It could be that J-Anne has been worrying and organizing enough for the both of us, to-do lists keeping her up at night. It could be that I actually wasn’t ready for this change or more likely that I was hoping I could simply buy all new fun things and clothes to start this new life…. but none of those seemed quite right.

Yesterday morning I went into the storage room, partly to get out of the sauna we are calling our upstairs lately, but mostly to begin to tackle this packing job. I saw my 8 (hot pink) Rubbermaid bins piled high to the ceiling. Surrounded by Christmas ornaments, party decorations and wonderfully odorous hockey gear, my first thought was “oh my goodness I hope that smell hasn’t seeped into those bins” but my second was “my whole life from the past 5 years are located in those 8 bins”. Thinking about it now, I know that this is where that avoidance was coming from. How will I ever be able to fit an entire life into 4 suitcases when those who know me will tell you that my wardrobe alone could take up 6. I kept thinking through this as I struggled to lift the bins down, being really careful of the one marked “wine glasses”, and began opening them up to see what treasures were inside. This brought me to pretty much my conclusion and where I find myself now, what do I need? What will I truly miss? The fact of the matter is, those bins are filled mostly with memories of an amazing 5-year undergraduate career, and they aren’t going anywhere. What I needed to realize was that Western Illinois University is an opportunity to make new memories, fill 8 more (hot pink, obviously) bins. You’re welcome, Dad.

So needless to say, I have decided that what I need is my clothes on my back and while is has been tough, I have managed to fill 4 suitcases with * most * of my closet. After all, the rest of them can always get shipped down later.

As I spend my final 36 hours in Canada, and the Ridge, I have one more burning question on my mind: “Can I get a double Caesar, extra spicy please?”

GGLI (great. groovy. love it.)

hollyd