Next month, Rob and I will set sail into our new lifestyle that involves a two-story house and a 90,000-acre lake in a small town north of Dallas. Our sailboat is berthed just 1.8 miles from our home, merging our sailing and writing passions.
Rob, the love of my life, my best friend, a true romantic and an exceptionally creative storyteller and writer, is walking alongside me, shoulder to shoulder, hand-in-hand into our new state of our union.
A 40-something year Kansas City-area native, I presently live only 12 miles from my parents’ and all three of my sisters are within a 90-minute to five-hour drive away. My Midwest roots run deep, and this move won’t happen without a few tears being shed. I really do not relish putting an eight-hour drive between my folks and me. Thank goodness for airplanes, though, and telephones and email. We’ll work around this minor inconvenience, and my heart will always be with them.
Rob, a native West-Texan left home at 17, joined the Navy, and he’s never looked back, having lived on the road for the first half of his career, and then, later, in Florida and Missouri (where we met), and now, back to Texas. His dream is to live again in the tropics, and in the meantime, we will build upon our three-year sailing history to hopefully master our sailing skills on a larger body of water, learning to navigate a lake nine times the size of our current lake, and better equip our sturdy, sleek sailboat to become the ocean-ready girl that she was built to be.
Our 4.5-year journey to our new port has not been a direct path. In sailing terms, we’d call this adjusting to the drift of life’s winds and tides. Rob, one of the most focused, hard-working men I know, has been in a business management role at Toyota the entire time I’ve known him. During our marriage, and with my blessing, he has resigned twice, once to accept a role at a different company (he was offered more money to stay), and the second time, so that he could take the leap into his writing career and as a full-time partner to CareerTrend. This second time, he was asked to remain employed, in a part-time role to which we agreed as it folded well into our transition plan.
Now, as we embark on Rob’s final month with Toyota, and my final month in my home ‘town’ of Kansas City, the excitement escalates.
We are ready, after having:
- Created Personal and Professional Boundaries: We realize life is more about valuing the moments, imbibing fresh air, learning to sail, serving great, smart and nice clients, and writing, so we have established boundaries with our time, our energy and with whom we engage, both personally and professionally.
- Scaled Down: We sold one car, one motorcycle and one bedroom set; we cleansed and decluttered four rooms (one to go), tossed lots of stuff; and cleared the emotional and physical clutter.
- Scaled Down Some More: Consolidated our cell phone plans, cancelled cable and became antennae television patrons (loving the All in the Family, Dennis the Menace, Andy Griffith and other reruns from a simpler time!). We were so weary from scanning hundreds of cable channels each night only to land on a local channel, in the end.
- Spent Two Years Beyond Our Original ‘Launch’ Goal getting business and personal items in order, including maneuvering the obstacles within a great recession.
- Gotten to Know Each Other at a Deeper Level that only can occur through our day-to-day living together and figuring out how to communicate, negotiate and love, at a deeper, richer level.
Living my dream has been a process over a lifetime; and somehow, deep inside, I’ve always felt the dream would get better during each passing day. And, it has; it’s also been replete with potholes, disappointments, pain, tears and sadness. Right now, I’m happy, despite uncertainty, and because of security, confidence, clarity, sweet relationships and romance, and through business and personal friendships.
Don’t ever give up hope, is what I’m saying, as even during the worst of times, things will change for the better, eventually, and seize those days.
Jacqui Barrett-Poindexter
Co-owner, Sea’s the Day
What a wonderful, heartfelt article, Jac. Thanks for sharing this with us. And what a grand adventure – all the way through. I wish you and Rob much joy and newly-discovered delights in your new home. Still shuddering at no cable, but I’ll get over it. 😉
All my best!
Ronnie Ann,
I love the idea of ‘newly discovered delights!’
So funny regarding cable – we only find ourselves missing an occasional show or particular station, here or there, but for the most part, it’s been a de-stressor being cable-free! (Is it cheating that we get weekly movies from Netflix? 🙂
Cheers – and thanks so much for the well wishes!
Jacqui (and Rob)
What a wonderful sharing post, Jacqui! You and Rob will be blessed in your move, you have put so much thought into the process. It will be hard but since you already understand what you will miss, it will be easier. By being so introspective in your planning, you will succeed. Our world has changed so much. We are no longer bound by as many things as we once were. We can work and communicate with clients around the world with a click of a button. Blessings, my friend! We will always be able to find you, no matter where in the world you and Rob go. Your family will stay connected.
Julie,
What a generous comment! And so supportive!
Thank you – your reinforcements further encourage me (and Rob) that we are doing the right thing, in the right way. You make a good point about ‘staying connected’ via a click of the button. I’ve found that to be true with clients, colleagues and friends around the world, so why wouldn’t it be the same with family : )
Your blessings are embraced – and I’m sending the same back your way as you continue traveling the path of career and personal success and satisfaction!
Jacqui
Jacqui,
What an inspiring and sharing post. You give so much of yourself and your story – a great connecting point. I’d love to hear more about how you created personal and professional boundaries – and what results you attained from that. And I look forward to learning with you as you make the move and for years beyond. Blessings and success!
Hi Vickie,
I really appreciate your insights on the post, and your support!
As well, I’m now strongly considering a follow-up post based on the how/results query you presented. The writer/reporter in you is challenging me (in a good way!). You’ve got me ‘thinking!’
Many thanks for your good thoughts and blessings (appreciated).
Jacqui
Good luck!
I’m with you on the cable. We haven’t cancelled ours, but we watch stuff via Netflix or Hulu, or download British shows to our computers. I don’t even know the last time we watched something on TV. Probably time to say goodbye to that bill.
We’re also decluttering for a possible move. So much dust!
Hoping you have much success and happiness.
Thanks Louise!
We haven’t (yet) tried Hulu, but may just look into that! Nice that you can download British shows, too. Customizing our ‘viewing’ pleasure feels nice; and seeing that bill to the door was a value-add.
Good luck with your decluttering efforts (ahem, yes, lots of dust here, too!), and your potential move!
Appreciate your well wishes,
Jacqui