I came home last Friday night from a three-day work trip to the west coast and saw something our five-year-old son made that got me emotional. Our house is in organized disarray as we prepare to move from Charlotte, NC, to Denver, CO. All I could think about was this little craft my son had made.
Moving houses is an emotional experience. There is the natural anxiety of needing to pack all of your possessions and the typical stress of actually doing it. Financial and time costs come with moving, too, both of which can trigger emotional reactions.
All of that is relatively easy compared to the emotional weight of leaving a home that housed not only a family but, perhaps more importantly, the memories, experiences, and milestones that can't be packed in a box and placed on a moving truck.
Back to last Friday and my son. He was already asleep when I got home. On our kitchen counter sat a new picture frame with a photo of my son and his best friend smiling together in their tee-ball uniforms. You've never seen two little boys with bigger smiles or happier to be with each other. Also, in the frame, written above the photograph in my son's handwriting, and between Hot Wheels stickers, it said, "TO MY 1st BEST FRIEND."
My son made it so his best friend could keep it when my son moves away at the end of the week. To me, this represents the most emotional part of moving. It's not the house, furniture, or neighborhood that matters to me. It's not any of the physical possessions. It's what the people and experiences here have meant to us.
As I looked at that picture of two little boys, framed by monster truck stickers and magic marker, I reminded myself, "Amidst everything I own in the world, it’s frequently the most inexpensive things that are the most priceless."
Answer the call. Do the work.
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