Personal Retreat

So I can blame it on the hermit crab but you and I both know there was much more to it than that.  I had been dreaming of a vacation for months.  My last several trips away from home found me sleeping on a couch.  I kept thinking how I wanted to go away and get my own bed!  And though I have always said that the mountains is my happy place, I have come to find the ocean to be a soothing place frequently calling my name.  I had been wanting to go to the beach for months.  And somehow my hermit crab finally gave me the nudge and the excuse to go.

 

I didn't really feel like I had the money to splurge but felt the call was greater than that concern.  As I began to make plans I thought of several friends who I knew would sacrificially join me.  Yet I realized that I felt the call not only to the beach but to go alone, well except for Hermie of course.  The year has been challenging and I sensed the need for some solitude.

 

So as much for my benefit as yours, I want to briefly share a few nuggets that I gained from my journey.

• Shrimp and Grits can be enjoyed just as well alone as with a friend.
• The more one is alone the more one begins to talk out loud to themselves or to her hermit crab as the case may be.
• The trip I took is one I believe my brother Larry would have enjoyed.  It is the kind I often said he and I should take - to a resort where we could stay put without riding around in the car. I thought of Larry a lot during my trip.  So many things reminded me of him.  It was a nice way to remember him and be grateful for his life.
• Sometimes God's presence is quiet and without demand.  I asked God several times to speak in the quiet of my journey.  I confess perhaps I was looking for some big revelation, transformation, or command.  There was nothing of concrete that I feel like God revealed.  But his presence was real in a hard to explain way.  There was the expected awe of God as I read Psalms  and listened to praise music while sitting on the beach.  Yet I also felt his presence as I dealt with the loneliness that came at times.  I sensed his approving presence as I read a Nicholas Sparks novel while sitting on the beach or knitting a scarf while watching TV.  He made my being alone okay.  It was restful and it was good.
• Upon arriving back home I found I had been sent a check, an unexpected gift that covered my hotel and gas cost.  Once again God provided.

Hermie's Journey

So Hermie, my hermit crab can be persistent. One mention of taking him to the beach and it was nag, nag, nag.  Next thing you know I have a reservation for two nights on the Eastern Coast.  Just to get him off my back of course.

 

Ready to travel!

I found a deal on a room at the Harbor across from Charleston.  We had a room with a view.

 

 

A view to the left.

 

The view below.
 

So having a room with a view can be over rated.   I left Hermie to nap in the room and went out in search of a better view.

 

 

And I found one by sitting on the little resort beach overlooking the marina and the city beyond.

 

 

 

And then I took Hermie to the beach.

 

 

 And we took a Selfie.

oops where is Hermie? ? ? ?

 

 



 Oh there he is.  Hermie has no time for Selfies.  It is time to hit the beach!

 

 

 

 So of course the elephant in the room throughout the trip was, "Is Hermie going home?"  And "where is Home?"  There were conversations.  There was controversy.  There were tears. 

 

Then we packed up and went home.

And on the way home all I heard was talk about a bigger Hermie House, a girl friend and next time going to Hawaii!

 

 

 

Emergency Road Trip

So I am thinking I may need to take an emergency road trip.  To the beach that is. 

 

It isn't for me you see, it is for Hermie my hermit crab.  It all started two years ago when my friend talked me into bringing home two hermit crabs from the beach for my classroom.  Sweet Mama and Crab Daddy were quite the pair for about 6 months until one of them died.  I don't even remember now which one it was.  I felt sorry for that one lonely crab and went to the pet store to buy a new one, Hermie.  Hermie was small and he turned out to be a very slow, timid and unsocial pet.  This past school year the other beach crab died leaving Hermie alone.  When a co-worker brought two new crabs from the beach for our classroom, Hermie permanently moved home with me.  It was for his safety because the new crabs were big.  I mean BIG like I would not handle them and I was afraid he would get eaten.  Hermie has continued to be a quiet pet.  I usually pick him up every few days just to see if he is alive because he is usually in the same spot.  But about three days ago something changed. Hermie has been on the move constantly. He climbs, moves rocks, tears up the water sponge, and appears to be looking for a way out.  I can hear him at all hours of the day moving about in his cage. 

 

So this has stressed me out a bit.  I keep wondering "What is going on?"  I have spare shells in there but he hasn't changed shells.  I keep freshening the water and food.  I cleaned out the cage in case it was stinky. He seems so desperate to get out. Having very high empathy I so want to relieve him of his anxiety.  I keep thinking "I need to set him free."  Thus this has lead me to seriously consider making the 6 hour road trip to the beach for the sole purpose of releasing the hermit crab.  It just seems only right.

 

Tonight I began to wonder if it was mating season and maybe I just need to go to the pet store and buy another crab or two.  It would be cheaper and less time consuming but doesn't sound near as adventurous as driving to the beach to set Hermie free.

Nutshell

So this is for those of you who have been wondering about "post military school dismissal." It can get long as I talk about the path to getting Peter enrolled in public school, my emotions, Peter's responses etc.  So I am going to try to provide a few highlights with enough info to let you know where things are.

 

• The City Schools started here on Wednesday. 
• We began the registration process with the school system on Monday.
• Due to a transcripts glitch and the crazy swamped counselor's office at the high school, Peter was finally signed up for classes today (yes Saturday afternoon) and will start school Monday.
• Peter will be a junior.  The school uses the block system meaning he takes four classes a semester with the potential of earning four full credits each semester.  This may be a beneficial set up for Peter.  Currently he is signed up for 3 academics and one elective (PE's) for each semester this year.  Peter will have his fourth opportunity to get his Algebra I credit.
• The house is currently stripped of TV's and Computer access for Peter.  He does not have a phone because he lost his and did not get a job this summer so he could replace it.  He walks to the library daily to have 2 hours of computer access and has been walking to the FLC to work out and shoot pool.  He has also reread the last 3 years of Sports Illustrated that his grandma has been providing for him. 
• Peter is excited not to be going to the military school.  Perhaps one area this has been most evident is in his planning of his wardrobe.  We made one trip to the school this week in which we anticipated Peter would get his schedule and attend classes.  He had specifically planned out his black and white ensemble.  When we left the school unsuccessful in getting him scheduled for classes he said,  "you mean I wasted a perfectly good outfit."  When I said he could wear it the next day, he said no he couldn't because people (all of 30 in the counselor's office out o 2,000 at the school) had seen him already.  After taking him home and making some enquiries about his transcripts, I left to return to work.  When I went to speak with him I found him trying on outfits and congratulating himself on looking good.
• I have grieved this week.  The grief stems from the loss of the support network that I had been developing at the military school.  It was also the rejection that once again Peter did not want this thing (the military school) that (through God's grace) I was giving him.  The grief will not instantly disappear but it is lessening.
• I am praying for wisdom to parent and guide Peter now that he is home all the time.  I am trying to look to the positives - I do see some.  I am reminding myself to be grateful for the 2 years Peter had at the school and the seeds that had been planted.  I am trying to let go of what was my agenda (Peter graduating from the military school) and trusting God's sovereignty.
• I am grateful for my new job.  It does not have some of the same stresses I was experiencing at the other school.  That is good considering that dealing with Peter on a daily basis can often be tiring. The staff at the school has been extremely understanding as I have come and gone this week in effort to get Peter in school. And the cute cuddly little three year olds I teach help to compensate for Peter's frequent prickles.
• I am grateful for the support of friends and family who have prayed and listened. It is very encouraging and greatly appreciated.