It's snowing!!

Things continue to be crazy, and I continue to leave my readers without much reading material. I'll have to fill you all in on Theresa and Dad's visits later (pictures will be included), but for now I can say we have all arrived safely in Iowa. Rick had some problems yesterday with the movers--they didn't want to move his car!--but things are straightened out now. The airlines had also lost his luggage, but we picked that up today as well. Last night Mom had the Julseths over for supper and today was spent shopping and getting a new bank account. We loaded up both my Jeep and my parents' with 2 of Rick's suitcases, 5 of mine, Rick's computer (which he shipped via UPS), and many household items I had forgotten I owned (plates, glasses, silverware, Christmas decorations....). Tomorrow we head to Grandma's for Thanksgiving and will be staying in Des Moines after that. Both Rick and I start work on Monday.

It's snowing very lightly here. I missed snow. People keep asking if it feels good to be back and I don't quite know what to say. Even as I was leaving I didn't feel the permanence of it--I have a hard time grasping that I'm not going back. I'm still not sure it has sunk in. I think once I get settled somewhere I will feel, well, something, but for right now I feel transient. As always. The house I shared with Kristin in Hanapepe was my longest residence since I left home for college. And I have never known where life would take me (and I'm still wondering) and never really had clear-cut goals. Maybe that's why I'm not feeling any permanence. This is where I am for now.

And it's cold here. But I thought it was too hot in Hawaii. It's a chapter I will never forget and one I will always cherish. There are many places and people I will miss dearly, but Kauai was not the place for me forever. I don't know where that place is, but I feel something here, something I can't describe. The chill makes me excited for the upcoming holidays and having my family around me warms my heart.

This is where I belong. At least for now.

It's good to be back.