Family

*After proof reading this I realized this is a post for me to express how I feel about Allison and I's life and where it will be in the next 5 years.

Since I am waiting on a phone call I thought I would write two posts today.  This one will deal with being away from family. 

Allison and I have forgotten what it is like to be away from family and friends.  Or maybe we just didn't really care when we were 23 year old kids living 4 thousand miles away.  The biggest obstacle we face living in South Dakota is being away from family.  This is for a couple of reasons.

One, we have grown accustomed to traveling to see family and friends.  It was nothing for us to pick up on an extended weekend to travel a couple hundred miles to see someone.  I think we traveled anywhere from 20 to 25 thousand miles a year for 3, almost 4 years.  At least 70 percent of those miles were to see family and friends.  Now it is hard.  There really is just no easy way to get back to see everyone when and as often as we want.  It is over 1000 miles one way to get back to the closest of our friends.  It would cost us 500 to 600 dollars a person to fly back home. 

The second reason why it is harder this go around is because of our younger family members.  My sister has a 10 month old son who we are going to miss out on for the next 5 years.  My little brother will have graduated high school by the time we move.  Our best friends daughter will walk, talk, and start kindergarten before we have a chance to even have a remote possibility of seeing them on a regular basis. 

This is not a whine post, this is an adjustment post.  It has only been 3 months in South Dakota.  Though we have enjoyed our time, we cannot help but ponder and think about how much we are going to miss out on.  There is always a reason for everything God puts in your way.  Sometimes it is not as perfect as you would like it to be. 

I have been blessed with a great wife and a job I finally feel I belong in.  I loved being cop, but mainly because it was fun.  I feel challenged in my job every day.  It is a great feeling.  But there is a sacrifice.  I have taken my wife from the comfort and love she wants and needs on a daily basis.  She is a trooper and has gladly gone, but I know this is not what she wants.  We made this decision.  She knew what this meant for our family and she sacrificed more than I have had to in our marriage.  I will never be able to thank her enough for that.

We will get accustomed to living here and being away from family and friends.  It will not be easy, but we will do it.  If it were not for our faith and understanding in God's plan I do not think we would make it here.  Luckily we both believe, and do our best, to allow His plans to guide us, even if we do not understand them.