A planned two-week trip back to the U.S. for Anna’s college graduation stretched into two big moves for our girls and a few extra days tacked on either end to help them each step into a new season of their journey.
In late April, Maggie took a new job back in Seattle. I offered to join her as she moved back because I missed the trip when she moved east. I flew straight into Michigan, cheered on the moving crew (friends from Young Life camp) and drove with her, west, across northern Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Idaho and then Washington – With a U-Haul trailer and our dog, Bingo.
Maggie was sad to say goodbye to some very dear folks in Michigan. I was grateful to see how she dug deep into life in this very small town. She leaves behind a house (which is now a rental) and a community of folks who I’m sure she’ll see again.
As much as I’ve travelled, I’d never been to many of the states we hit on this trip. Small town, middle America is refreshing. We blitzed with 10 – 13 hour stretches in the car over four days and gratefully took a little detour through the Bad Land’s National Park in South Dakota. It was tremendously windy and Bingo couldn’t go on the hikes so we stuck to the “scenic views.”
The road ended at Wall Drugs. They do take dogs, so we went in for a walk. Frankly, I don’t get it. A major tourist trap in the middle of nowhere with a bunch of stuff to buy.
We loved Montana and Idaho. They are both so beautiful and whet Maggie’s appetite to be back in the PNW with the hiking and outdoor sports she has missed in the last couple of years.
We were both relieved to get the U-Haul turned in and Maggie was very excited to start her new position as Sports and Recreation Director for Klahanie – a community of 10,000 residents. It’s a perfect fit for her skills and a new professional challenge.
Scott flew into Seattle and after hitting a Kraken hockey play-off game, we took off to Dallas to celebrate Anna’s graduation from SMU (Southern Methodist University.) We enjoyed a number of graduation festivities. We were thankful to be able to stay with our longtime friends, Melinda and David Chapman, who continue to welcome us during our long stretches in Dallas.
The day after graduation – Anna and I took off with a rented SUV and her little Jeep stuffed with all of her earthly belongings to get her settled into her first apartment in Memphis, Tennessee. It’s about an 8-hour drive from Dallas.
Scott headed back to Uganda.
Anna gets to use her college degree to step into work for the local NBC affiliate station out of Memphis. I wasn’t too excited about our recent graduate moving to the most violent city in the U.S. but she assures me that the news there will be more interesting. Maybe that Leist thirst for risk and adventure has rubbed off on her.
She’s already beginning to acclimate to her 3 am to noon work schedule that she will start next Monday.
David Chapman (our Dallas host) thought we were crazy. We had less than a week to find a place for her to live, move in, equip a kitchen, and buy a bed and a few pieces of furniture from Facebook Marketplace all before I headed back to Uganda. But Anna had pre-arranged 9 apartment tours which we crammed into our first day. She made a decision, filled out piles of papers, got a cashier check (she wasn’t sure what that was), and was handed the key on our third day in town.
Our city girl has found a great place to live and I have to admit that the regentrifying downtown core of Memphis is pretty vibrant. The music scene is thriving. The National Civil Rights Museum sits next to the preserved Lorraine Hotel where Martin Luther King was assassinated. We ate in the breakfast spot that Elvis Presley frequented. And, after comparing it to a dying Seattle, its down-right inviting.
Once again, its hard to say good-bye to our girls but it was pretty remarkable that they both moved within three weeks and I was able to be there.
This week, I arrived back in Kampala and have already jumping into time with the 11 Pepperdine Legal Fellows who will be here for the next 9 weeks.
I’m pooped! But I'm more excited for this season for Maggie and Anna.
Wow! That’s a lot! Praying your sweet girls settle in to their new jobs and homes quickly, and find great community. ❤️
Wow Sally! I’m tired just reading about your trip. Praying for your work in Kampala.