Family Mellmann

The movers took the rest of the stuff from the house today and they emptied our local storage units.  Once they were gone, the house was truly empty.  No furniture, no decorations, no wifi.  Just dust and debris, and an echo. I cleaned the house with a little help from Katherine before loading my car with what the movers wouldn't take and with what Katherine and I want/need for our time in Grand Rapids (where we will "winter"...like being snowbirds with no meteorologic understanding).   As we drove away, the snow was falling.  It was beautiful.  It was as if the weather and the house were just trying to show us how wrong we are to be moving.  

The movers arrived this morning to start loading our possessions into a truck.  Since River Cove Road has weight restrictions and there's no way to back an 18-wheel semi into our driveway, they came in a large U-Haul truck.  They take everything to the local warehouse where they will collect all our things (two truck loads worth from the house and two storage units) and repack it onto a cross-country hauler (an 18-wheeler most likely). They disassembled everything that had screws holding it together (table legs removed, for example) and wrapped everything in either heavy-duty shrink wrap or moving blankets, and sometimes both.  They even removed the front tires from our bikes.  By the time they left this afternoon, they had removed almost everything; nearly all the boxes that I had packed, nearly all the furniture, almost everything from the garage, and everything from the basement.  They even hauled away much of our patio furniture. Early tomorrow morning, I wi...

Today I taught my last classes at Trinity.  Roughly ten years, 30 or so performances, and more than 200 students.  Before I was a volunteer teacher, I was just a volunteer, serving in classrooms, helping where I could.  My first students are now college graduates, professionals, and parents! Time flies but it has been a great run.  I have enjoyed serving these kids.   From one of the high school students. " It’s going to be a lot different without you but I’m sure we’ll manage. You're the reason I can read music now!  I couldn’t have had a better music teacher. " You're the reason I can read music now!  What a privilege.

The packing here in Williston continues.    Boxes are piling up and the countdown to the movers arriving to collect our possessions is ticking ever louder.  But who wants to see pictures of empty rooms and piles of boxes?  Check out this sweet gift from one of my students.  I know there's a letter missing, but it truly is the thought that counts...and it's got music on it!

At church on Sunday I received another lovely gift from one of my students.  A musical staircase picture and a charming little music stand figure accompanied by a wonderful note.  I love how they made Mrs. into eighth notes!  They sure are making this good-bye thing hard. :)  

For the most part, I am working alone to get the rest of the packing done and the house cleaned.  However, with a notably emptier house, the elusive Katherine has been making more regular (and longer) appearances.  I even persuaded her to help me with some of the cleaning.  I am secretly hoping she will help me some more this week and next as we get close to departure. Today's dinner was a Katherine request - green bean casserole.  Light and easy so that I could keep packing.  

At church this morning, some of the kids from the children's choir, which I conducted for one of the Christmas services, brought me these lovely notes and handmade cards.  As if saying good-bye to my adult friends wasn't hard enough, being appreciated by my more youthful friends was really touching.  When you are "just doing your job", it is easy to forget that your students might have a different perspective on your role.  When they stare up at you during rehearsal, looking mostly unimpressed, it is easy to conclude that they could care less what old person is up there making them sing.  These kind notes and thoughtfully drawn pictures tell a different story.  What a blessing. It was a weird New Year's Eve.  Joerg is on his way to Montana so we weren't together.  A typical New Year's Eve finds us sleeping soundly by midnight so I thought I would challenge myself to stay awake until 2024 arrived.  2024, the year I move to Montana.  Who knows ...

We have spent the last three or four days, since Patrick returned to Arizona, pitching, packing, and preparing.  With Joerg's departure set for early tomorrow morning, we wanted to get as many projects completed where brute force and strong muscles were necessary. I've been packing away and inventorying the things that will go into long term storage.  Joerg has hauled away the last pieces of furniture that won't the make the move, the area rugs (also not moving with us), and random other junk.  What is left will either go with us as we journey westward or into long term storage (after the movers pack it in their truck and haul it across the country). With all the decorations gone, several pieces of comfortable furniture gone, and many of our creature comforts packed into boxes, this place starts to look more like a piece of real estate and less like the house we have called "home" for sixteen years on land we have called ours for almost twenty-four. Joerg is ahead...

So far, our Vermont winter has been mild.  We have had a little snow, followed by warm days to melt it away.  And the last week has been rainy and foggy.  The picture doesn't quite do justice to how pretty the Christmas lights were in this afternoon's dense fog.