On our way!

Terri and I are finally on our way to paradise! Terri is done with school, completed her final testing, and has just a few more papers to fill out once on Saipan and Tinian. We have packed our lives into a number of cardboard boxes (now wending their way to Tinian ahead of us), and are making our last 'goodbye' stops in Philly and Salt Lake prior to flying to Saipan. Now that all the packing and cleaning are behind us, we are both beginning to feel the excitement build as we start a new chapter in our lives.
Everyone we talk to is jealous...it is an interesting view of other peoples lives and perspectives. As we say our goodbyes to friends and co-workers, they often express how much they would like to do the same thing we are doing-- going on an adventure to an exoctic location. We feel the same, in reverse: why don't more people do this! It is fun and exciting, we will meet new people, make new friends, learn about new and interesting cultures, and, hopefully, grow as individuals and as a couple. There are so many possitive things, and so few negative things, it really is strange that we have become the exception instead of the rule!
So we are officially on our way, and will reach paradise by the end of August. Although we have 'signed up' for at least two years, we actually expect to be on Tinian for much longer. I have at least 10 books already 'written in my head' (each book I have written has taken about a year, so you can do the math), and have no doubt that Tinian will be a conducive place to write. But only time will tell.
The future has always been different from what Ihave expected. Like many proffessionals, I am trained to plan ahead, to look for possible problems and provide contingencies for those problems if they arrive. The goal is to avoid or prevent problems before they happen. But life is far more complictated than our mortal minds can plan for! Life is full of surprises and problems that no one could possibly predict or plan for. One of my wife's favorite sayings to our children is to always live 'on the balls of your feet'. In other words, always be prepared for the unexpected! Knowing this to be a fact of life, a person can either 'enjoy the ride' by veiwing all of life's surprises as a fun adventure, or simply look upon life as a series of unending, unsolvable problems that simply bring us stress, pain, and hopelessness. Terri and I have chosen to veiw life through the former window: a fun adventure, full of exciting surprises and joy. We have and do face all the same problems and challenges others face, we just choose to see them in a different light. Perhaps that is why Terri and I are on our way to a paradise called Tinian, while others only dream of doing the same thing.