Wednesday, November 23, 2016
A fresh beginning
On November 9, the morning after the election I posted this note on my Facebook page: “Congratulations to the winners in Tuesday's elections across the country. Now it is time to go forward in peace and harmony to build the best future for all Americans.”
On November 22, I left Moss Creek Plantation in Hilton Head, but I am not moving to New Zealand or Mongolia, or any other place not bordered by the Atlantic and Pacific oceans and Canada and Mexico. I have been around the world; lived for some time in China, Australia and Europe and there is no place I want to call “home” more than the United States. I simply moved about 100 miles up the road to Mt. Pleasant, S.C.
This move does not relate to the outcome of the recent Presidential election, although like many, I was shocked and am still apprehensive.
When I married for the second time on St. Patrick’s Day in March 2013, I moved to Hilton Head with my late wife, Joyce, and the house she owned. Now I return from whence I journeyed: Franke at Seaside, a continuing care community, where I spent the final five years of a 56 year marriage to my first wife, Mary. I will live in an Enhanced Independent Living apartment in The Cove while waiting for a larger apartment to open elsewhere on the campus.
This move has been an exhausting process. More so than any other I have made. Perhaps age and being alone play a part. I made a checklist of things I had to do. Twenty-four tasks came up on the list, some of them with sub-lists. Culling books, wall hanging pictures, clothing, and other creature comforts were among the hardest things to do. A local charity agreed to come by and make the pickup: more than 25 boxes and bags of items I have been hauling around since I closed our house in Hanahan, S.C., in 2007. (Think pack rat or hoarder.)
When Joyce died in August 2015, she provided in her will that I could live in the house as long as I wanted, and bequeathed to me a house full of furniture, appliances, furnishings, pictures, silverware, china, glass, and books. With the agreement of her Trustee, I am able to leave most of this behind for the use and benefit of her children.
The next phase of my life begins. I look forward to renewing friendships with former acquaintances, making new friends, and getting on with the process of life. I enjoy good health and am comfortable in my own skin. Who knows, I may even find another wonderful woman to walk hand in hand with into the future.
My email remains: arch@archibald99.com)
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