Leaving the Little ones, Visiting the big ones

We have established the routine of leaving the grandchildren after they wake up. It puts us behind schedule as far as travel time is concerned but it seems to finalize the visit for them. It is a sort of Mister Rogers approach as we pack the car and put on our traveling cardigans so the visit comes to a visible end.
We eat breakfast together, pack the car together and load up Papi, Grammy and whoever is with us, back out of the driveway and let the grandkids run down the street waving goodbye as we drive away. (It is a very quiet street.) For Mykenzie, it is a clean break so she knows that the regular routine of her day will begin again. For Grant it is less of a finality since he is only two years old, but it provides an event his parents can point to establishing a moment they can used to explain our no longer being there with him. Leaving gets harder every time.
We had a pleasant drive over to Hot Springs on mostly back roads and secondary highways. It may have been a slower way to go but it was not nearly as stressful for me. It took a full ten hours of driving so we arrived a little after 7 p.m. Victoria and Maggie were still working and Brittany was “trapped” in the dorm; two held prisoner by work schedules, one held prisoner by rules. Such is life.
But Josh, Seth, Grandma and Grandpa were home for the initial hellos. It is always good to see family and it is reassuring to see how the Lord has allowed our children to mature physically and spiritually.
Eventually we all got together and were able to visit a while before I had to get to bed. Mama and I were worn out, but after a good night’s sleep and a hot breakfast we left the motel to wake up the house – literally.
Today we will attend Chapel at Gospel Light with the girls and probably have lunch with them in the cafeteria. It will give me a chance to visit with Pastor Capaci before we see him tomorrow night at church. We both enjoy that.
As we spend a few days here it is difficult not to think about the final leg of the move and the long list of tasks that await us there. It is impossible not to think of the church family we left in New Jersey, but it is a joy to hear the good reports that we get from friends still there.
Pastor Miller has always said that it is easy to leave, but hard to stay. I understand the sentiment, but it turns out that that may not be entirely true.