I’ll admit it, I don’t like change. I don’t like moving. I don’t like the thought of moving. I grew up in a very stable household. I lived in that house my entire life and I could ride my bike to either set of grandparents. The biggest move we made was going to see my cousins about 20 minutes away and I remember thinking it took an eternity to get there every time.

Then, life blew up in its own magnificent way and I had no choice but to move. And to move again. And again. You get the picture. I could not provide the same stable environment for my kids and that always will feel like a failure. But when God calls us to move, we must go. I keep praying for that kind of stability in our lives now, but He has a different plan. My kids are dispersed in four different places. And it’s where they belong, but I don’t have to like it.

Today, my oldest son is moving to Seattle. He has been in Los Angeles after growing up in Northern California. He’s a 5th generation Californian and that means something to me because it means we are grounded in our land — our community. Only God has different plans from my vision.

Last night my son and I were researching our family tree. Our family moved from Nebraska to Montana under the homestead act. It reminded me how desperate they had to have been for land because in a covered wagon, they took 5 kids (they would have 7 more) and lived in a one room shack. We checked the weather there last night and in October it was 30 degrees with “icy rain.” Icy rain in October — can you imagine farming in such country?

It made me so grateful for the stability I was able to enjoy because of my ancestors. Because they lived such a hardscrabble, difficult existence, I lived like a princess in Redwood City, California — “Climate best by government test.”

But now, God has said “go” again to my son. He’s an engineer out of work in California and they’re not hiring. So, just like his ancestors before him, he’s answering the call because it’s necessary.

I am hopeful that one day, we will all live in our own Hallmark movie and we’ll all be in the same place once more. Until then, God said “Go!”

Ever gone when you didn’t want to?

Sorry for the bad quality, but this is my grandfather’s homestead in southwestern Montana.