Returning to Grace

We arrived here in Vancouver and started a new job on the first day of January, of course we could have never predicted how it would go but we thought as we left Grace Idaho behind that we were headed to make the Pacific Northwest our 'Home', to put down roots and Finally settle down (since we've moved about every 3 years or less our whole marriage, I felt more than ready!).  Within about a month of our arrival I could see that LeGrand was frustrated & discouraged that the job wasn't panning out to be what we were promised & expected.  At one point he even told me that he was feeling regret, that maybe this move was a mistake.  I didn't know what to think, we had just moved our family to another state. 
     The move had never felt wrong, we got the job, the company moved us - paying all expenses- and payed for our stay in a Motel for 2 months while we searched for a house.  The house search was tiring and exhausting but we found a home that was right for us and it all fell into place just right.  We moved in and quickly made friends and felt like things were looking up. Unfortunately the job wasn't looking up.  LeGrand was on a constant search for something different, applying nearly daily for different positions and opportunities around us.  With the company headquarters just 20 min. away in Portland we thought this was the perfect answer, he would just get a different position, he could easily commute and we wouldn't have to move.  Months went by we were feeling more settled, except for the job although it was even seeming to have some better days.  All this time we prayed earnestly to find something that would be a better fit, more enjoyable for LeGrand.
      Around the end of July/first part of August I was busy around the house when I was flooded with memories of Grace.  Memories of all of the things that were so good for our family there. Laexin and Loa and their close relationship due largely to them only having each other.  Our preparedness both with food storage (partially because we were forced to be prepared without groceries so accessible) and finances.  The little Thatcher School that would come up in conversations at least once a week, where Laexin still asked to return.  The opportunity for the kids to be involved in so many activities because they were more affordable.  The ward that was packed full of people who were much more like family than friends....
     I couldn't believe this was happening, we hadn't even considered that Grace might be the answer & when I shared my feelings and experience with LeGrand he blamed it on baby hormones and told me it would pass :)  But I couldn't deny an answer stronger than I had felt before.  Within the following weeks I pushed and inquired if there was even a possibility to return.  Well there was but the likelihood of it happening was slim to none - there happened to be a guy retiring the end of September but for LeGrand to get back in after leaving wasn't going to be an easy task.  To say the least it was going to take miracles, several of them.  While LeGrand would love to return to his job in Grace he wasn't very encouraging or positive about it - mostly because logically it wouldn't work out and he didn't want me getting my hopes up to have them crushed.  I finally convinced him to try for the job and that if it worked out it would be such a miracle that we would know it was right.  And it did, after weeks of trying and waiting, it happened.  We shared it with the kids and Laexin was so happy he was nearly crying.  And I had to all but promise I would never complain again in my whole life and I would be happy to live forever in that tiny little community, all while LeGrand continually reminds me that he tried to make me love it when we were there the first time :)
    So once again we are packing and moving, returning to Grace and it feels like we are going home.  We couldn't be happier yet in the short time we've been here in Vancouver we've made great friends we will greatly miss. 
    I've had several people say to me, 'do you wonder what the purpose of this was, why did you have to come here just to go back' - Yes! Yes! I have wondered but I also have felt that Heavenly Father allowed us to come here - to a place that had everything we were convinced we wanted. A beach within 3 hrs., stores and conveniences within 5 minutes, an Airport 20 min. away, no below freezing temperatures etc. So that we could be reminded that just because it's what 'we' think is best for us, doesn't mean it is. Those things we thought were best really are just things, and the things that impacted us so much in Grace are the things that are important.  I also believe Heavenly Father wants us to learn these lessons for ourselves, so he helped us get what we want - we needed to come here or we may have always wondered if we would've been happier.  We may have regretted never leaving Grace.  And though in some ways we took the 'hard way', it's this 'hard way' learning that impacts us the most and can leave the biggest impression on our hearts.  The road we've traveled this last year will not soon be forgotten, the relationships we've built, the experiences we've had - we wouldn't give them back for an easier way.