Introducing “Moving stories,” a new series from Livability.com
It’s the end of a long day. The sun is setting. Everyone involved is weary. You cut the plastic wrap off a sofa or a chair or two and grab a warm bottle of water or a freshly purchased cold beer.
It’s the end of moving day and you’ve never been so happy to have so much unpacking ahead of you. Because you’re in your new home and the ‘move’ is behind you. Now it’s time to settle in, meet the neighbors start adjusting to your new community. It’ll be a big task, but tonight you just focus on figuring out which switches control which lights.
We move for various reasons: retirement; divorce; new kids; career opportunities; starting kindergarten or graduating college; and even natural disasters. Some circumstances are happy, some bittersweet but no move is insignificant.
Whether across town or across the country – whether it’s a van and a couple buddies or a semi-trailer and a four-man crew – moving is a lot of work and it can take a toll that’s physical, emotional and economic.
Each year more than a million Americans move to a new state. Each of those moves has a story behind it and behind each of those stories is a person, a family, a name. No matter the motivation, it’s a trying time. The mix of emotions swirl together taking in the hope and excitement about starting anew and the sadness of leaving the place you used to call home.
These stories aren’t always easy, at least not along the way. But ideally those involved find that the results are worth it and the new home opens new possibilities and new futures.
And so we begin a new series here at Livability, one we’re calling “Moving stories.” We’ll start with the story of three women forced from New Orleans by Hurricane Katrina and how that move ultimately gave them the freedom to find their new best place –anywhere on the map. Later in September we’ll tell you other stories <examples to come when the stories are filed>.
Moving forward, we will introduce you to new people and families on the move and share the wheres and whys of their relocation.
Because the stories of your moves, move us and we want them to move our readers as well.
Think you have a great story to tell? We’d love to hear it.
Matt Carmichael
Editor
mattc@livability.com