Week 4: Starting to Feel Like Home

When I think of home, all different kinds of images come to mind- places I have lived, people I love, things that make me feel comfortable. But mostly home is that place where I can exhale and feel like no matter what happens, I am safe here. I am home.

This week the camper has started to feel more and more like our home. We have gotten into a good little routine (most days at least). Except for our laundry basket, everything seems to have found a place. And Scott and I have started dreaming of little updates and renovations we would like to do to make the space more functional for our family.

Honestly, most of it will have to wait a while until we can get the trailer back to Tulsa. But it is good to dream and start to envision what our home on wheels can look like. Plus it is good for Scott to have some time to talk me off of my “let’s go big or go home” renovation ledge.

Scott says he has been spending a lot of time talking people off of ledges lately, so to speak. There comes a point after every disaster where homeowners are just tired of the mess and ready for life to get back to normal. The people he has come across lately certainly seem to be there. Even though they may be ready to throw their hands up in the air and give up on their home, it is important to remind them that progress is being made and things will get better. Disaster relief is an emotional business for everyone involved, and this week certainly has been no different.

Madeline and I have been enjoying a lot of time outside in the mornings and afternoons while Emily sleeps. I think we have both started to adjust to how to have fun without a yard or grass. Coloring with chalk, riding (or pushing as the case may be) her bike, and playing with water all work well in the small spot under our awning. It might not seem like a lot, but the chance to get out of the camper and get some fresh air makes the day easier for both of us.

The campground we are at has mostly long-term guests. Almost everybody goes off to work in the morning and returns in the evening. It makes for some very quiet days- and time to have the laundry room to myself. We have met one older woman who is home while her husband is working as a subcontractor for FEMA. She has come to chat with us a couple of times. I think part of a place being home is the people that surround it, so being a part of a neighborhood so to speak is important.

I feel like this post is like watching paint dry or waiting for the punch line of a bad joke (hence the cute kid photos as a distraction). But that is often the way life feels, isn’t it? The ebbs and flows of each day that make up our life don’t have to always be interesting or exciting. Many days they are not. But we keep living the life before us in daily obedience to God, trusting Him that what we are doing day in and day out will make a difference in the lives of others.