I Miss Hutchinson

I miss Hutchinson, Kansas.  I never thought I would utter those words.  Really.  I mean some really crappy things happened there. 

• I never wanted to move.
• There was no support system or family there.
• I was pretty much alone from the minute I set foot there.
• My marriage died there.
• I struggled as a single mom there.
• It was ridiculous being the ex-wife of a person everyone thought was "such a nice guy".

The list is long.  And let's be honest, Hutch is not a booming metropolis.  I constantly complained about nothing to do, no cultural experiences, blah, blah, blah and with the news that they won't even have a Target next year...I must be off my nut!  However,  now I find myself living in another city, completely happy in the spot where God planted me, yet missing something I never thought I would and reflecting on what that place really was.  I've come to realize that Hutch wasn't a bad place to be at all.  In fact, Hutch was where:

• I watched Brig start school, never looking back at me, but holding her Bubby's hand tightly.
• I saw Conor shoot hoops on the driveway for hours and then in gyms for more than I can count.
• I watch my babies grow into teenagers, learn to drive, fall in and out of like, love, etc.  
• I met some terrific friends and co-workers.
• I met students who changed my life and who taught me instead of the other way around.
• I learned some important lessons from some excellent bosses.
• I learned some important lessons from some terrible bosses.
• I got my masters degree.
• I made our home into my perfect sanctuary (with the help of friends and family).
• I discovered Roys, Crosspoint Church, and that the best iced tea at the State Fair came from the Bracket's stand at the Sugar Shack.  
• I grew up.

So as I look at that second list, it's obvious that Hutch was much more than a location on a map where I "did some time".  It was an important part of my life.  It still continues to be as Conor and Rhyanna are firmly planted there and are thriving so I get to go back and spend some time now and then.  It's not the same, but it'll have to do - and I can still get my Roy's fix when I need it!   That 20/20 hindsight is a tricky tricky thing, huh?  I guess the lesson learned is to stay focused on the positive and bloom where I'm planted instead of looking to the future and making plans someday, right?  

Apendi..what?

If this project has taught me anything, it's that God felt I needed a lesson in patience and rolling with the punches.  It has also taught me how lucky I am to have wonderful administrators and a job I can do from anywhere.

Favorite son, Conor, called me as I was finishing up a class.  Seems he had some major stomach pains and left his school (he's a Social Studies teacher) to head to same-day care.  There, they told him it was 90% possible that it was his appendix and that they would need to do surgery by the end of the day.  Wha......t!?!

Now, please understand that while I would NEVER invite nor give myself the label "helicopter parent", any time that there is a possibility of someone cutting into one of my children, I'm going to be there.  That fact together with the mom guilt I still have over not being five minutes down the road anymore had me throwing necessities in a bag and hitting the road in under 20 minutes.  As a side note let me say that I had to let LVS know that I was "leaving" for the day and that I would be unavailable to teach my afternoon class, by email, and by phone.  I was astonished at the response.  First, my principal called me and left a message...then texted to make sure I was ok.  Then came the emails from coworkers sending prayers and well wishes.  What a fabulous place to work!

I arrived in Hutchinson about the same time that Conor was told he had "appendagitis".  What does a kind, caring, English teacher mom do?  I corrected his pronunciation...
Me:  It's pronounced appendicitis
Con:  No.
Me:  Really, Conor?  It is called appendicitis.
Con:  Mom, it's really called appendagitis...Google it.  (Secretly shaking his head and wondering when he can take another pill...)

So I did.  Epiploic appendagitis (EA) is an uncommon, benign, non-surgical, self-limiting inflammatory process of the epiploic appendices. Other, older terms for the process include appendicitis epiploica and appendagitis, but these terms are used less now in order to avoid confusion with acute appendicitis.

Who knew, right?  So much to his delight, he was not facing surgery.  Instead, he got a nice prescription for some hydrocodone and orders to hit the couch and stay there until whatever was going on untwisted itself.

Again, I am lucky that I have a job I can do from any spot that has an internet connection.  And, we are all thankful that Conor didn't have to go under the knife.  <3

Back to Hutch...

In this family, we never seem to do things the easy way.  Conor and Rhyanna will start their spring break this week and ---- drumroll please------they will close on their new house!  They just bought a move-in-ready cute, cute, house in Hutchison.  What they didn't bank on was the fact that Brig would be living with the until she graduates AND that they'd be my hotel for three days right when they move in.  My spring break is in the books and when I returned today, I had to proctor state assessments in Wichita.  So, for the next three days, the girls(canines) and I will be staying with them.  Yes, that's four adults and four dogs all together with mounds of boxes a new house to get unpacked.  Life is truly never dull.  

It was so fun to be a part of their new house.  They've done a terrific job scheduling all the necessities (alarm company, cable, internet, water, gas, electric) and are now dealing with the revolving door of people coming to install.  I got to help set up part of their living room, went to purchase a ladder with Conor, and basically got to see two young people totally and completely handle things on their own.  They've got this, and that makes not being five minutes down the road a little bit easier.

I am so happy for them...and their dogs.  :-)

Cry me a river...

     Ok, usually I wouldn't categorize myself as an overly emotional person.  Yes, I happen to cry every time I see that Folgers commercial where the son surprises his parents by coming home for Christmas and wakes them up with the smell of freshly brewed coffee.  I can't help it...it gets me.  And of course, Hallmark Hall of Fame movies make me cry.  I think the writers of those things sit around contemplating how to rip the hearts of viewers to shreds Finally, when I am so completely, utterly, infuriated and have no way to voice my opinions without damaging a relationship or getting fired, I cry (and that pisses me off even more).  Anyway, in my normal day-to-day, I am not a crier.   That was SO not true this past weekend.  Holy moly the floodgates opened.  Brig and I were busy loading the truck Saturday morning and we both ended up in the shed out back.  I looked at her and told her how much I was going to miss her. I shouldn't have done that.  We were both a giant heap of bawling mess.  Then I walked into my empty bedroom and it started all over again. AHHHHH!
     Although I have not enjoyed Hutchinson (for many reasons), it has been home for over 20 years.  Brigid took her first steps in that house.  She learned to walk, talk, and grew into an extraordinary young woman.  Conor went through school in that house.  He played sports, practiced shooting hoops in the driveway, posed for prom and first-day-of-school pics, and came back to live while student teaching in that house.  While some view a  dwelling as a place made up of studs, sheetrock, and flooring, I have always needed and cultivated a nest for me and my family.  So, leaving this particular nest with all its memories finally hit me and took my feet out from under me.
     I am excited about the future and what it holds, but this past weekend was full of memories relived and closing the door to that chapter of our lives.  That stung a tad...more than I thought it would.