Too Many Goodbyes.

Youngest Kid said it last Sunday:
Too many goodbyes.

Good bye to Eldest Son who's off in Korea teaching (I am waiting for his blog updates!!!)

Good bye to Middle Son who is happily applying for what he hopes will be lucrative internships in finance (he's a university senior and the world is his oyster.)

Goodbye to the season of "hands on" parenting.  Wayne and I are now officially empty-nesters. That Youngest Kid who bravely went off with us to Asia as a 15 year old is now an 18 year old University of Wisconsin freshman.  I said good bye to him and cried like I haven't cried in years.

Good bye to Eldest Sister, the gardener, who revamped our yard, helped cook, savored some lovely glasses of wine with us,  even though-- or maybe because she's wrestling with the pains and aches and hard decisions of Stage 4 breast cancer.

Goodbye to my eighty-seven year old Mutti who is still interested in every aspect of our lives. Who has finally agreed to start using a cane when she goes for her walks.

Oh yes, I almost forgot, good bye to that cat, Wilson, who terrorized the chipmunks in our back yard, but magically came when I, only I called him.

Sometimes good-byes are a good thing. We said goodbye to Wilson the cat - he's staying with friends. This chipmunk is enjoying raiding our bird feeder in peace.

 Good bye to cherry trees and fall colors and crisp evening air.  Good bye to those chipmunks and the deer and the bluebirds.  Goodbye to Door County ice-cream, tubs of Amish blue cheese, fresh salmon on the grill. Goodbye to the good Lutheran churches and kind, caring individuals who support us so graciously. 

Now it's back to Hong Kong, where my husband is already at work and where a new job awaits me.


The Daily Text  and prayer are especially helpful for me today:

Friday, September 9

I will say, "They are my people"; and they will say, "The Lord is our
God." Zechariah 13:9

Be all the more eager to confirm your call and election, for if you do
this, you will never stumble. 2 Peter 1:10

Lord, our God, help us to follow in the path you have set before us.
Keep our steps sure and prevent us from stumbling. We are your people.
Thank you for being our Lord and God. Amen.