Most of my loyal readers and dear friends are aware of my impending 3-year relocation to London this summer, but for those that aren’t – yes, I will find myself having that old familiar feeling of being an “outsider” once again in just a few short months. In the coming weeks I will be using my blog to journal some trivial but important-to-me thoughts about this new chapter in life that awaits. It’s a great opportunity, to be sure, but it’s never easy saying goodbye to a life that you’ve come to enjoy and friends that you’ve grown to love, even if it is just a short-term hiatus.
A Bird In Hand Gathers No Moss
With both the wife and I having spent a good portion of our earlier careers in the US military, relocating to a new assignment was something that we had pretty much become conditioned to accept as soldiers. I guess you could say that our military experiences with regard to being ready to deploy somewhere across the globe at any given moment essentially prepared us for the sudden stops and starts in civilian life, especially considering that our relocation this summer will mark the 4th time since we left Active Duty back in 1991 that we’ve packed up our things and moved the family to parts unknown. We spent a year in Webster, Texas, then spent 7 years in Paducah, Kentucky, then in late December of 1999 – my wife accepted an assignment from her employer that led us to northeastern Pennsylvania, where we’ve pitched our family tent the longest. This past December marked our 12th year living here, and although both of my children were born elsewhere – this is essentially the place they call home since they’ve lived here as long as they can remember. While I recognize that there are those who spend a significant portion of their careers globetrotting from state-to-state or country-to-country, as I’ve gotten older and become tremendously less ambitious in life – I’ve embraced the comfortable, quiet existence that I now enjoy. Or have enjoyed, as this all changes once again this summer.
It’s not easy, but someone has to do it…
When we moved here back in 1999, my situation in life would change forever more. My wife’s promotion was the starting point of a rewarding career, and with it came a life-changing opportunity that I’d never before even remotely considered. Had you told me 20 years ago that I’d find myself unemployed and relying solely on my wife to provide for our family, I would’ve assumed that it would’ve been because of something bad.
But luckily I would’ve assumed incorrectly.
Although I have dabbled in part-time jobs and seasonal gigs within the golf industry since then, I’ve spent the better part of the past decade enjoying the life of a stay-home dad. And not that it’s an easy gig, because I’ve often said that I have days when I’m every bit as busy playing Mr. Mom these days as I was just a dozen or so years ago as a construction products salesman catering to about 2 dozen surly contractors on a daily basis. But too – I’ve grown to love my situation in life, a situation that every kid fresh out of high school dreams about… finding a beautiful, educated woman to settle down with, starting a family, and then allowing his beautiful wife to use her ambition and business smarts to climb the corporate ladder in spectacular breadwinningly fashion. All of this, while the husband gets the kids to and from school, taxis them to various doctor appointments and after school activities, learns the fine art of spicing up Hamburger Helper just enough to make it an acquired taste, and learning precisely why all of those different wash cycles on the washing machine matters when doing laundry the proper way. And last but certainly not least – managing all of these things accordingly so he can devote 4 days each week to becoming the very best hacker he can be in golf.
Yes, I live a good life, I never take that for granted. And I hope that I never do, regardless of whatever course on whatever continent I might find myself on, or whatever struggles I might have hitting a good ball on any given day. When you’ve been blessed with an opportunity to enjoy your passion in life – there really is no such thing as a bad round.
In the coming days and weeks here at my blog, I’ll be sharing some trivial thoughts about my personal journey in the game over the past decade. I’ll also talk about some memorable golf moments that stand out in my mind, including personal highs and lows. I’m not exactly sure why I never before considered writing a golf journal, other than the fact that outside of myself – most would likely find it boring and pointless.
But everyone has a story to tell, and this one happens to be my own. Thanks in advance to all who find it interesting enough to follow along, and may we all someday realize that the reward isn’t found at the destination in the end, but the journey itself.
