It's the final wire to packing, moving, unpacking, getting settled into a new community, and all while the wave of emotions topple me over. It's happening while I'm excited for a fresh start in a great area as the new pastor of a very country church and a larger city church; while I'm sad to depart from many terrific people and some that I can call good friends; while I'm overwhelmed with the headaches of packing, ensuring that the right stuff is packed appropriately and labeled correctly for the moving company; while answering the phone to various well-wishes and goodbyes.
I did get a chance to meet my new secretary last week. We had a great conversation, hopefully figured out a manageable relationship, and me seeing that this person likes to have a system so that everything gets done in a way to make her job easier.
I like that. It means that all I have to do is "fill in the blank and let her be". It means that I can spend some time getting settled in, visiting some folks, and getting things unpacked around the house and office.
I also got to meet the groundskeeper for the church, a very nice guy with a plan and the best way to get things done for all people involved. I'll hear from him when he needs access to my house or I'll see him go through the church to get to whatever he needs to the sprinklers, I'll see him when he's mowing and trimming, and other than that, as long as everything is done, we're all good.
As excited as I am, I'm also sad to depart from some great people. These are the people that I can truly say as made an impact for the good for my pastoral ministry.
There are always a couple of people like this, and as I think back over my ten years as a pastor, I can still tell you their names, their family, and somewhat more about them. In comparison, I sometimes forget my name.
I'm also sad to leave some people who are fairly new to the ministry I've had in Pierce & Osmond. I think back to the boy who spent over a year in the hospital after a transplant, only to have the transplant removed. Because of his extended stay, I had to do his baptism in his hospital room, and while every baptism is special to me in some way, his also had a unique twist to it. I'm also sad to leave a few kids who started coming to the Pierce church this past Fall and continued to come because, as their mom put it, "we like Rev Kev" (but I think they were more fond of my dog, Dingo). When they came to the Farewell Reception on my last Sunday afternoon, we must have hugged a dozen times.
There are also two or three couples who recently started to come to one of my churches, all with intentions of a future wedding there by some silly guy who they liked. In the short time that I got to know them, I've grown very fond of them and excited for the new lives ahead of them. I'm going to miss them.
And while all of this stuff is bouncing around in my head, I'm overwhelmed by the finished boxes, the partial, waiting to be filled, boxes, and the trash that has accumulated, compliments of the "well, maybe I really don't need to save this" concept that seems to be all so evident this week. Thank goodness that I can rent a dumpster from the city for a few days to make things easier for the garbage guys tomorrow.
All of this is sad, depressing, and can raise my anxiety to a Defcon 1. But I also have to pause and thank every single person who has been there for me, in the thick and the thin, in the easy and in the rough, in the down and in the joys.
So with a sad but thankful heart, I say "Blessings" as I go, and "Blessings" as I arrive.
