Hubs commented this week that it is amazing how we have moved from one community to another,
settled in,
grown accustomed to,
and are still thoroughly enjoying our new location in rural Texas.
This time last year we had just moved in.
We were homeowners again after two years and I was telling my overwhelmed self that day one was not going to look like day eight or 30 or 100…
I was right, here I am at day 365, give or take a few hours, and all is calm.
The house we bought is everything we had dreamed of,
as a friend of mine remarked recently, looking out on our back fairway during lunch,
“Don’t you feel as though you’ve died and gone to heaven?”
When we moved from Garland we left behind a life with neighbors, a community theatre, a church where we were active, stores we had shopped at for almost 30 years, friends around many corners, doctors, hospitals, trusted mechanics and several lifetimes of memories.
We endeavored to re-establish ourselves quickly not wanting to wait for the dust to settle or gradually become acquainted with the local color.
Contrary to my reserved nature I took the plunge and offered help, issued invitations, and spoke to everyone I met along the lane on my daily afternoon walks with my new found puppy friend, Charlie,
“Go and meet Hubs, we’re just over the bridge, first on the right, through the 100 acre wood and thistle meadow, you can’t miss us,” I’d call out waving vigorously!
Having owned just the one house for 29 years we were new to the game of moving and came into it rather late in life,
we didn’t have children to break the neighborhood ice,
we weren’t in a retirement community with an activities manager to introduce us around,
we were on our own.
Happily a couple a few doors down hosted Pizza and Beer every Wednesday evening.
All the neighbors (and many others) were encouraged in our weekly reminder to…
“Come if you can, any time after 6.30pm. You don’t need to bring anything. Very casual.”
After our first month, just as we were set to leave for Florida for the summer, we had discovered,
There was a lot of chicken and bee-keeping going on,
A vineyard just down the road was owned by folk from Broadstairs,
Goats were raised for meat as well as milk and cheese, and to keep the grass and brambles down,
People went in together to slaughter a cow,
St. Peter’s tucked between houses in the middle of downtown McKinney,
Eggs came in blue and green as well as white and brown,
Local honey tasted better when you knew their keepers,
Dogs had no respect for boundaries and would as soon poop in my front yard as theirs.
A local bookclub, a garden club and a yard man, shared by many of the neighbors,
Horses whinnying on the other side of our creek,
The streets were numbered not named,
Coyotes have many different calls that carry great distances,
Trees, knee deep in grass,
Run down barns, fields with soy crops and herds of grass fed cows, were commonly cited as landmarks,
barn cats have their kittens at about the same time,
and that tractors are coveted.
This much we know for sure,
Footlights is still charming us after a year.
Well hello there! My name is Vivienne McNeny.
I am an empty nester exploring life as a Boomer…you could say I'm happily Boomering along!
As a homeschooling Mum I have finally quit the job of role model and mentor to my four children. I do what I want to do, eat when I feel like it, enjoy life with my blue eyed cowboy and clean my house once a month or so whether it needs it or not!
In true English form I write about the emergence of my true identity now that I can no longer hide behind my children as their Mum.
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