Saturday, May 13, 2023

Last Morning in the Seminary Apartment

It is my last morning in this seminary apartment.  Later this afternoon, at 4 or 4:30, I'll head over to my sister's house for dinner where I'm spending the night.  At one point, I thought it would take me the whole week-end to get my stuff out of this seminary apartment and get it cleaned, but I no longer think it will take me that long.  I usually leave town by going up I 270, cutting cross country to Harper's Ferry and Winchester, getting to I 81 that way.  Leaving from her house cuts a smidge of time off my trip.

When I first made my plans, I knew that I didn't have to be out until May 15, and I thought I'd want to enjoy one last week-end in this apartment.  But once it's packed up, it's not nearly as cozy as before.  It's a bit of a feeling akin to sadness, knowing that this time has come to an end, that it's time to go.

Part of my decision also comes from the last trip to North Carolina.  I left on Sunday, and there was less traffic.  I started thinking, maybe I could leave on Sunday again.  My spouse's sister and her fiancé are spending 2 days with us on their way back from the seminary graduation--another reason for leaving earlier rather than later.

Last night, I was closing drapes for the last night here, and I looked out across the parking lot at the library building, with the few lights left on for the night.  I will miss this view.  Earlier I had watched the small children of my upstairs neighbor play just outside the building, and I reminded myself that I was never going to stay here long enough to watch small children grow up--that community is the one I'm headed to when I leave tomorrow.

At some point, I'll write a blog post about what I've learned from a year in this seminary apartment--for the most part, it's all been good.  But this morning, I'm too distracted by tasks left to do, and I'd like to take one last morning walk around the beautiful seminary neighborhood.

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