We were 29 years old at the time and living in a 1918 fixer-upper bungalow on Main Street in our home town. I was pregnant with our first and only child. I took a corporate job in a big city that was over an hour away. The commute had gotten old and with a high-risk pregnancy and a baby on the way very soon, it was time to make a change.
That change was a long time coming, as we'd talked about moving away back when we were dating. That fixer upper never actually got fixed up. Instead, it nearly bankrupted us. My boss at the time once told me: "You don't have a real job. Anyone can do what you do." That certainly inspired me to get a "real job" in the city to better support the baby on the way. My husband's career was at a standstill and he was up for a change.
So we did it. The old house was sold and a new - as in, brand new - house purchased. It was half the house for twice the money, but the windows didn't rattle when the wind blew. My husband quickly nabbed a job in his field in our new town and we moved away from family, friends and all we'd known.
It was a good thing. It was the right thing.
But it was a hard thing, too.
Even though we didn't move far away, we were still away. Some were not especially supportive. We didn't get a lot of regular visitors from home except for my very supportive in-laws and my best friend from childhood. The phone didn't ring too much.
But my husband and I were together and we forged ahead. We had new jobs, a new little house, a new city to explore, and new resources like the arts, daycare choices and healthcare facilities (important with a baby on the way). We were alone, but we were together.
And, best of all, we had a Target.
Our son was born less than a month later. We lived in our first community for four and half years and then relocated a county over (and closer to our hometown) into the house we've lived in now for more than 15 years. We're still part of the metro area, but live in a smaller, rural community.
Our son attended excellent schools here. Now, at almost 20, he is studying engineering at a university in the city, has a very cool job at an engineering firm and lives in an apartment on campus.
We've been blessed with wonderful friends who became family to us, a dear church community, and the opportunity for my husband and me to switch jobs and change careers as needed and desired.
It worked out.
I love my home town. It is a quaint river town in a county surrounded by national forest. Some of my most favorite people in the world live there. But looking back 20 years later, I'm glad we listened to our hearts. I'm glad we took a chance and made a leap of faith. That leap of faith was truly a show of, not only trust in God, but also trust - faith - in us.
It hasn't always been easy, but making a home together has been worth it.
And it has been worth doing together.
