Changes

Changes are good right? Then why do most of us resist change? Why do I get sick at my stomach at the thought of having to change anything? Change is all around me these days.

Job Changes) For those of you who don't know - my job has changed and has many uncertainties to it now. I am now the State Irrigation Engineer and technically my office is on the fifth floor of the federal building in Little Rock. Now the idea of being the SIE is really cool but the new responsibilities are huge. The location of the job is an issue for me because this is the same federal building that Timothy McVay once considered as a location for bombing though he chose Oklahoma's Federal Building instead. I don't think like an extremist so to think that one person out there thought of this building makes me concerned about the other extremist that exist in the world. The scope of my job is the other issue - I've been working on irrigation project almost since day one on the job and I believe in the irrigation projects. They are designed to reduce the ground water consumption of farmers to a tolerable amount in order to keep from depleting the water source. The solution to the problem is to divert excess drainage water out of local rivers for their use. I fully believe in being good stewards of the land and believe that using our resources wisely is how we can honor God. How this relates to change is that because of legal suits against the government, funding for my office has been almost nil and thus the powers that be want to shut the office or reorganize it, as is the latest endeavor. I believe in these projects and don't want to stop working on them, but I work for the federal government and thus must do what some bureaucrat in Washington feels is important and not what I feel is important.

Girl Scout changes) Scouts is a huge part of my world. I have two girls who love scouts, a husband who should have made Eagle Scout, a mother-in-law that was a scout/leader/training for GS and the one of the first den mothers, two nephews who are Eagle Scouts, a aunt-in-law that is a life time scout and my very fond memories of my little time in scouts. Well, like all things people move up in positions and think that they need to make their mark on something and they start tinkering with it to make it "better." Well, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. I'm sure that this too will work out fine but I like scouts how it is. I'm a very old school type scout and like the structure of the organization and I even like the uniforms for ceremonial purposes.

Friends change) It's moving season again in Cabot. We live in a community that has either lived there their entire life or are military (usually) transients. Every spring/summer, the moves start happening and we have to say good bye to someone that we have come to know. Well, this time it isn't a military friend but a UP friend. Thanks UP for bringing them here but do you have to all the good promotions in Omaha? Can't there be any really cool plush engineering jobs here in Arkansas? My family has grown extremely close to the Hicks family in the last year. The girls are more like sisters and Kristi and I are more like sisters then I would have thought possible for only really knowing her for a year and a half. I was there with her through the darkness of her sister's death and now I have to watch as she moves away to a city 10-12 hours away. With gas prices and economic trends, I know face to face visits are going to be very limited at best and that just isn't the same. Again change is good, but change still hurts.

Kids change) Hey did you know that my first born is now 10 years old? She is leaving elementary school next Tuesday for the last time as a student there and will be officially a middle schooler. Do you know that she is on the edge of becoming a teen and all those wonderful hormonal changes that come with it? I didn't either until just the other day. Wow, were did the time go? Just the other day, I was pregnant and scared out of my mind about child birth. I'm so very proud of her because she is an awesome, sweet, respectful young girl but am I ready for the next phase? I don't think I have a choice.