Coming out of 2019, the financial future for us looked bleak. However, Rodney was hauling much more than he had been, but it still wasn't good. We were starting to talk to people about other job opportunities, but it wasn't really going anywhere.
We did start the new year off with the joy of celebrating two weddings in January. The girls were very busy with both: Rosalind was the maid of honor for one of her girlfriends, and Rayne photographed it. All seven of us attend the wedding in Kansas. The second one was my nephew's wedding. Regan helped with the planning; all the girls did the decorating; I made the wedding cake; and Rosalind and Rayne photographed it while Regan ran the sound. Rodney did the chores on the farm, even pulling a calf, so that his brother and nephew could both be at the wedding. Both of these weddings were really special to us, and it might have been just what we needed to keep our minds focused on what really matters.
The German Feast came and went with its usual stirring activity; it broke a new record by raising $150K that day! The junior play preparations followed in its footsteps, just like normal: night practices, stress, the usual. The abnormal thing about the play was the cost to produce it. I spent $8.99. That's outside of the script and royalties. That is a new record. What did I spend all that money on? A spring for a screen door. On Monday right after the play, I went to New Life Ranch with the eighth graders on their trip. This is when everything started changing.
Rodney texted me on Monday that he received a call from Western Equipment: a driver had just turned in his two weeks notice. We thought this door had closed, but here we were and Rodney had an interview the next day... and then, a job. By the end of the week, his new boss expedited his paperwork through HR and gave him a drastically-shortened window for benefits and two weeks vacation up front. Rodney hit the ground running with only one day of training from another driver before he was taking his own loads the next week.
By then I was home from the NLR trip and trying to enjoy Spring Break, but I was reeling from the realization of this COVID-19 and what it was going to mean for my life. Teachers met just before break and our admin told us to enjoy our break and we would deal with the unknowns later. i.e. It's not time to worry yet. Rodney was two days into working his new job and then abruptly, his boss had a heart attack and died. It was surreal. He was 56. Even more unthinkable than the timing of it was the coronavirus threat that quelled everything social, even funerals.
In normal times, the funeral for this man would have drawn hundreds, but in light of world events, the family asked for a private family funeral with a procession of John Deere equipment from the church to the cemetery. The guys spent a few days shining up 7 pieces of equipment for the motorcade, including Rodney's new truck. On the morning of the funeral, 14 Western Equipment men showed up in the parking lot of the church before the funeral and stood post by their machinery. The family came and greeted them, thanking them, hugging them and crying with them for showing their support of the family before retreating into the building. Soon, the deceased man's son, who also works for Western, came out and invited the men into the service. They went in and sat together. Rodney said that there were a total of 32 people there. That broke my heart. It still does when I think about it. This is not how families heal. This is so unfair.
While Rodney was at the funeral, I was at school meeting with teachers and admin, figuring out how to proceed with the rest of the school year. School was called off statewide in many states already, including Oklahoma. Distance learning became a reality. After learning the technology, it's not a big deal. The big deal is the students. I miss them terribly and they miss me and school and their friends and other teachers. They are really struggling. You know who else is struggling? My college girls.
Colleges statewide went to 100% online for the rest of the semester. Some college professors aren't very good with technology, either, and not very resourceful. Most of it has become busy work and or homework overload, and the girls aren't happy but they're adapting because, what else can they do? We moved Rayne home from the dorm which was a sad day for her. She had to say goodbye to her friends and a job she loves, for now. Regan's clinicals have ended and have been replaced with online simulations, which is disappointing for her, and Rosalind would like to CLEP out of a class vs. taking this summer. Hopefully the testing centers will open soon. So I have two college girls home, right now. In other news, Regan and Hayden sold their house.
Soon, and I mean very soon, I will have Regan and Hayden living on the premises too. They have had home inspections and the appraisal. We're thinking they will hear something this week. The plan is to move most of their belongings into storage and upgrade their camper to a nicer one and park it in the yard. With them come two very large dogs. UPDATE: Regan and Hayden moved last weekend and are now our neighbors. It was a very busy weekend from the moving to building a dog fence, digging for the septic tank, and just being together as a family.
So, yes, I went from an empty nest last fall to soon having 6 of us home or within spitting distance, along with 5 dogs. It might as well be 7 of us; Kelby, Rosalind's boyfriend from Texas, comes about two weekends month too. Thankfully, he doesn't bring a dog with him. My house is as full as my heart. I love my life, my family, and my school family. My heart hurts for the ones that this COVID-19 madness is affecting the most: all the students in my life and the nurses in my life. As for me, this staying home business isn't anything new. I love being at home, especially when my family is here. We cook at home, play games, laugh, do laundry, whatever. Now, I teach school from home. I'm ready to go back to school because I really miss my students and coworkers. That's what school is to me-- the people. I'm not in love with my content enough to do this without them. I trust God. He always provides what we need just when we need it. I cannot imagine facing this coronavirus situation without Rodney's new position at Western; the financial uncertainty would have been a heavy load to bear. From here it's still one day at a time, but it's not as scary. God is good.
We did start the new year off with the joy of celebrating two weddings in January. The girls were very busy with both: Rosalind was the maid of honor for one of her girlfriends, and Rayne photographed it. All seven of us attend the wedding in Kansas. The second one was my nephew's wedding. Regan helped with the planning; all the girls did the decorating; I made the wedding cake; and Rosalind and Rayne photographed it while Regan ran the sound. Rodney did the chores on the farm, even pulling a calf, so that his brother and nephew could both be at the wedding. Both of these weddings were really special to us, and it might have been just what we needed to keep our minds focused on what really matters.
The German Feast came and went with its usual stirring activity; it broke a new record by raising $150K that day! The junior play preparations followed in its footsteps, just like normal: night practices, stress, the usual. The abnormal thing about the play was the cost to produce it. I spent $8.99. That's outside of the script and royalties. That is a new record. What did I spend all that money on? A spring for a screen door. On Monday right after the play, I went to New Life Ranch with the eighth graders on their trip. This is when everything started changing.
Rodney texted me on Monday that he received a call from Western Equipment: a driver had just turned in his two weeks notice. We thought this door had closed, but here we were and Rodney had an interview the next day... and then, a job. By the end of the week, his new boss expedited his paperwork through HR and gave him a drastically-shortened window for benefits and two weeks vacation up front. Rodney hit the ground running with only one day of training from another driver before he was taking his own loads the next week.
By then I was home from the NLR trip and trying to enjoy Spring Break, but I was reeling from the realization of this COVID-19 and what it was going to mean for my life. Teachers met just before break and our admin told us to enjoy our break and we would deal with the unknowns later. i.e. It's not time to worry yet. Rodney was two days into working his new job and then abruptly, his boss had a heart attack and died. It was surreal. He was 56. Even more unthinkable than the timing of it was the coronavirus threat that quelled everything social, even funerals.
In normal times, the funeral for this man would have drawn hundreds, but in light of world events, the family asked for a private family funeral with a procession of John Deere equipment from the church to the cemetery. The guys spent a few days shining up 7 pieces of equipment for the motorcade, including Rodney's new truck. On the morning of the funeral, 14 Western Equipment men showed up in the parking lot of the church before the funeral and stood post by their machinery. The family came and greeted them, thanking them, hugging them and crying with them for showing their support of the family before retreating into the building. Soon, the deceased man's son, who also works for Western, came out and invited the men into the service. They went in and sat together. Rodney said that there were a total of 32 people there. That broke my heart. It still does when I think about it. This is not how families heal. This is so unfair.
While Rodney was at the funeral, I was at school meeting with teachers and admin, figuring out how to proceed with the rest of the school year. School was called off statewide in many states already, including Oklahoma. Distance learning became a reality. After learning the technology, it's not a big deal. The big deal is the students. I miss them terribly and they miss me and school and their friends and other teachers. They are really struggling. You know who else is struggling? My college girls.
Colleges statewide went to 100% online for the rest of the semester. Some college professors aren't very good with technology, either, and not very resourceful. Most of it has become busy work and or homework overload, and the girls aren't happy but they're adapting because, what else can they do? We moved Rayne home from the dorm which was a sad day for her. She had to say goodbye to her friends and a job she loves, for now. Regan's clinicals have ended and have been replaced with online simulations, which is disappointing for her, and Rosalind would like to CLEP out of a class vs. taking this summer. Hopefully the testing centers will open soon. So I have two college girls home, right now. In other news, Regan and Hayden sold their house.
Soon, and I mean very soon, I will have Regan and Hayden living on the premises too. They have had home inspections and the appraisal. We're thinking they will hear something this week. The plan is to move most of their belongings into storage and upgrade their camper to a nicer one and park it in the yard. With them come two very large dogs. UPDATE: Regan and Hayden moved last weekend and are now our neighbors. It was a very busy weekend from the moving to building a dog fence, digging for the septic tank, and just being together as a family.
So, yes, I went from an empty nest last fall to soon having 6 of us home or within spitting distance, along with 5 dogs. It might as well be 7 of us; Kelby, Rosalind's boyfriend from Texas, comes about two weekends month too. Thankfully, he doesn't bring a dog with him. My house is as full as my heart. I love my life, my family, and my school family. My heart hurts for the ones that this COVID-19 madness is affecting the most: all the students in my life and the nurses in my life. As for me, this staying home business isn't anything new. I love being at home, especially when my family is here. We cook at home, play games, laugh, do laundry, whatever. Now, I teach school from home. I'm ready to go back to school because I really miss my students and coworkers. That's what school is to me-- the people. I'm not in love with my content enough to do this without them. I trust God. He always provides what we need just when we need it. I cannot imagine facing this coronavirus situation without Rodney's new position at Western; the financial uncertainty would have been a heavy load to bear. From here it's still one day at a time, but it's not as scary. God is good.
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