It is morning and I just asked myself have I done the right thing? Dragging my family through a major life change. I look at Ryan sleeping in just his brief - he has not swam in weeks and swimming was his only constant form of exercise. He was watching TV till 2:30 am and claimed he could not sleep until I coerced him into turning it off. I looked at Bert and think to myself I have disconnected us from all our families and friends - it is about 10pm in Singapore and it should have been our usual tennis followed by supper night. But it is too late to turn back.
The last two weeks have been a whirlwind of activities. The packers came to our house and in two days, most of our household stuff were packed and shipped. It was unbelievable how efficient and professional they were. The packing was beautifully done, down to creating temporary wardrobes to hang the clothes taken from the closets. Amazing. And in the midst of the packing, a Swiss family came threading through the boxes gingerly to view the house. I thought it could not have been the worst timing because it certainly showed the house at its messiest, so different from how it normally is. Yet, to my utter amazement, they liked the house and within 2 hours, they had indicated they wanted to rent it and a price was offered. Wow.
And mom lived with us through the 2 days of messiness and in the process, managed to give away to the packers 2 treasured backpacks that I wanted her to give to my nephews. They were limited edition in that there are no more of such. So like mom but she should have at least consulted me before giving my things away. My heart ached for quite a while.
And the last of the koi died. It was terribly heartbreaking. It was as if they knew we were going away (just like the bats who left soon after I got the new job) and they did not want to carry on without us. The Swiss family was fascinated by the koi and were disappointed to know they had all died. So we had to go and buy new baby ones. Bert cleaned out the pond, and the new koi were released into it.
The rest of the household stuff we finally threw away because the garang kuni men were picky - after we waited 2 days for them to show up. When you need them, they don't show up; otherwise they come around all the time with their annoying horns. So the garbage truck came and the two men were delighted. They kept all the good usable things for themselves - I supposed to sell - and the rest were crushed by the machine.
Then we moved to the service apartment to live out the remaining week in Singapore. And it was a fantastic week of almost daily tennis in Orchard ParkSuites' two tennis courts and nightly suppers. Everyone was determined to hang out and hang together as much as possible before the final farewell. An amazing circle of family and friends and an amazing experience. Thank you so much. We never felt more loved.
Contrast this with the first week in SR. Lost luggage aside, it has been a very lonely time of combing the internet for information, then driving around looking for school and a home and being very tired from jet lag all the time. And eating irregularly and living in a hotel room strewned with bags after they arrived.
But we were fortunate that Ryan was accepted into Iron Horse Middle School almost effortlessly. We went to Wells which is in Dublin because our interim housing was in Dublin. They sent us off to a new school which has just been built to combine Wells and another school. But we could not find it despite trying for 2 days. There is a lot of development going in there. My colleague, who is taking over my existing job, suggested I called Iron Horse's principal who is apparently very highly regarded. I could not get him but we decided to just drop by the school. The registrar, Val, was a fantastic lady. With her help and by calling Oakwood to give me a change of interim housing to San Ramon, we were able to get Ryan registered although Val still had to get clearance from the school counselor that he was fit for Grade 6 or we may have to find another school. The next day, Val got airtime with the counselor and yes, he is accepted. Hallelujah!
The next day, Ryan had to attend Jaguar Camp - orientation by another name - and we found out Iron Horse is the fifth highest ranked nationwide and second in the state of California. Wow again.
I went to the office on Wed for my expat briefing session with HR and the agency. And had a full day of leadership team meetings on Thursday, first with my new colleagues and almost immediately afterwards, with my existing colleagues in Marketing Solutions. So poignant in a way. And had two nights of dinner, on Wed with my existing colleagues as a farewell to Rachelle and I, and the next night, with my new colleagues, as a farewell to my predecessor and a welcome to me. The closing and opening chapters.
So this Saturday morning, we are moving into Promontory View and will begin a new chapter. I am looking forward to it. To unpacking our clothes, shopping for Ryan's school supplies and getting a semblance of order back into our lives even if it is only for the next few weeks.
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