OK, here's the deal. After spending two great years in California we moved back to England last January. We felt strongly that England was where we were meant to be this year. David even turned down a job in Tennessee that would have been a solid, secure alternative. And I really liked Chattanooga. But, after thinking and praying hard, it just didn't feel like the right fit for him. So we took a step in faith and came back to England, in the dead of winter, with no guarantee either of us would find work, and not sure how the move would affect Evie. We had seen providence working in our lives over the past two years and really felt that this was the right thing to do.
I'll tell you now that that belief has sometimes been the only thing that's kept us going over the past 10 months. I was lucky enough, after a couple of horrid temp jobs, to find long term temp work at the hospital, but neither of us have been able to find permanent work and we've had to survive on my temp pay, some articles David's written, and the kindness of friends and family. Fortunately David got a three month fellowship at the Folger and was able to send some of it home to cover expenses here, but it was a really tough summer.
The good news is that while David was in DC this summer he was offered the position of Director of Archives and Statistics at the General Conference (of the Seventh Day Adventist church, for anyone not in the know). Which means that come early next year we'll be moving back to the States. And, without having to stretch the imagination much, we've seen providence again. David was in the right place, at the right time to be able to attend interviews, meet with the right people and make all sorts of arrangements before he left. We had some long talks on the phone while he was there, and then when he got back, about whether this was the right thing for us to do, especially bearing in mind how strongly we felt we needed to be back in England. We concluded that everything seemed to be coming together to point us in that direction.
God works in strange ways. Funnily enough, not having a car or any money has meant that since we've been back we've rarely been able to do the things we love to do here in England: eating out, visiting National Trust sites, theatre trips, days out in London, weekends away, etc. That, combined with the fact that, after living in Angwin, Whitley is shabbier, dirtier, noiser and generally more unpleasant than we remember it from before we left, and that we lost our wonderful neighbours and now have to listen to the new neighbours screaming at each other and their kids all day , has prevented us from being as attached to life here as we would have been otherwise.
So, the plan at the moment, contingent on his work permit coming through, is for David to go out early in January and for me to follow in March. They will pay for me to come over for a week to have a look around so I'll go with David in January and do some mad house-hunting. The I'll come home and tie up the loose ends here, get our house in shape to be rented out, and arrange for the movers to come and take our stuff away. My Dad's trying to organise things so he can come over for a couple of weeks in February to help out which would be fantastic as he is totally Mr Handyman. David will fly back over at the end of February to help out with the last minute things, spend time with Evie on her birthday, and then we'll fly away in early March.
We sound so organised don't we? Ha!
More later on what we are hoping for the next few years.
I'll tell you now that that belief has sometimes been the only thing that's kept us going over the past 10 months. I was lucky enough, after a couple of horrid temp jobs, to find long term temp work at the hospital, but neither of us have been able to find permanent work and we've had to survive on my temp pay, some articles David's written, and the kindness of friends and family. Fortunately David got a three month fellowship at the Folger and was able to send some of it home to cover expenses here, but it was a really tough summer.
The good news is that while David was in DC this summer he was offered the position of Director of Archives and Statistics at the General Conference (of the Seventh Day Adventist church, for anyone not in the know). Which means that come early next year we'll be moving back to the States. And, without having to stretch the imagination much, we've seen providence again. David was in the right place, at the right time to be able to attend interviews, meet with the right people and make all sorts of arrangements before he left. We had some long talks on the phone while he was there, and then when he got back, about whether this was the right thing for us to do, especially bearing in mind how strongly we felt we needed to be back in England. We concluded that everything seemed to be coming together to point us in that direction.
God works in strange ways. Funnily enough, not having a car or any money has meant that since we've been back we've rarely been able to do the things we love to do here in England: eating out, visiting National Trust sites, theatre trips, days out in London, weekends away, etc. That, combined with the fact that, after living in Angwin, Whitley is shabbier, dirtier, noiser and generally more unpleasant than we remember it from before we left, and that we lost our wonderful neighbours and now have to listen to the new neighbours screaming at each other and their kids all day , has prevented us from being as attached to life here as we would have been otherwise.
So, the plan at the moment, contingent on his work permit coming through, is for David to go out early in January and for me to follow in March. They will pay for me to come over for a week to have a look around so I'll go with David in January and do some mad house-hunting. The I'll come home and tie up the loose ends here, get our house in shape to be rented out, and arrange for the movers to come and take our stuff away. My Dad's trying to organise things so he can come over for a couple of weeks in February to help out which would be fantastic as he is totally Mr Handyman. David will fly back over at the end of February to help out with the last minute things, spend time with Evie on her birthday, and then we'll fly away in early March.
We sound so organised don't we? Ha!
More later on what we are hoping for the next few years.
Well, you won't be close, but at least it's closer. I love stories like this (and I've always loved your story-telling, from the time we were little girls sitting in an orchard) and seeing how God works in our lives, if we only trust. Praise Him for providence!
ReplyDeleteThanks Tammy. I'm planning on coming to California at least twice a year while we're in DC and I'll definitely be there for Alumni Weekend this April as it's my 25th. See you then?
ReplyDelete