My husband and I
moved from Michigan to Oklahoma about five years ago; at the time we were
living in a townhouse/condo in Michigan and I loved it. It was across the
street from our church which I adored and I was very connected to; in church,
bible studies, and small groups. My husband had retired from his job of 23
years and thought he would find another job easily but at the age of 58, it was
far from the case. A headhunter called him while we were at supper one Friday
night and asked if he would be interested in a position in Oklahoma; he said
yes, that they could submit his resume and application since it was a temporary
assignment and nothing had been fruitful in his look in Michigan. They told him
then that they had already submitted him and they wanted him to start the very
next Monday. Within thirty minutes…our life changed dramatically; he thought
for the best, but I was selfish and thought otherwise.
He flew to
Oklahoma on Sunday evening; just 48 hours after receiving that phone call. The
plan was for him to live in an extended stay hotel for five weeks at a time and
then return to Michigan for five days. It was to go on that way for six months
and we were grateful for the position and the benefits; I missed him when he
was away but I was selfish and chose that option rather than traveling with him
because I was happy and connected at my church. I just knew that Jesus had
other plans for us and encouraged my husband to keep looking for a job in
Michigan instead of pursuing a permanent position at his company in Oklahoma.
Mind you… no one had been interested in him for nearly three months. He was 59
and people wanted to hire fresh college graduates that they could pay half the
salary and benefits. He was also now working in his dream field of Aerospace
Engineering in Oklahoma instead of taking whatever design job he could find in
Michigan but because I was happiest in my newly found comfort zone…I expected
him to drop it all for me. Our marriage was tested to say the least. Hence, my
Nineveh reference. You see...the church that I was choosing and the bible
studies I couldn’t leave, to support my husband, decided to study Jonah. A
friend of mine suggested we take this bible study but in my mind…it was just a
book in the bible with four chapters and about a whale. I wasn’t interested.
But, before the study started, my friend had convinced me to enroll in the study
and it couldn’t have been more appropriate. Jonah was comfortable where he was.
He was a prophet and was great with God talking to him and telling others what
to do. But, when it came down to it, and God told him to go to Nineveh to spread
his word…he proceeded to tell God that it wasn’t a good idea and that they
killed his family and there was a history there. Surely God was mistaken. Long
story short…he didn’t want to go to Nineveh and even booked every seat on a
ship to take him in the opposite direction of Nineveh; insert whale here. He
got to Nineveh and no matter how many chapters it took to tell his story…he
made it clear that he wasn’t going to do what God wanted. (Gulp) That hit a
little too close to home. I was Jonah and Oklahoma was my Nineveh.
Hubby was
offered a permanent position with the company that had faith in him; despite
his age and physical location. He is still with that company today because of
his loyalty to this company that took a chance on him when no one else would.
But… I still wasn’t there yet. I moved to Nineveh dragging my feet and kicking
and screaming.
I don’t drive;
too chicken. My youngest daughter agreed to drive our car; following my husband
in a 26ft moving truck that held all of our possessions, for 19 hours to get
from Michigan to Nineveh. She and I talked along the way and we agreed to have
faith in what my husband set up for us; we hadn’t seen the apartment he chose
for us and had been living in for the month before we arrived. I told her not
to complain about the 100 degree temperatures we were going to be driving into
or to say anything about the size of the apartment or what it looked like; he
did his best. We agreed that no matter what we were walking into, we would be
grateful and happy to start our new life. She kept her word when we arrived
late at night and pulled into the parking lot of the apartment we would call
home. I did not. Despite it being a new luxury apartment complex and we being
the first tenants in this apartment, I did absolutely everything I asked her
not to do…and more. My husband parked the moving truck and before we were even
out of the car, I complained of the heat, the flat landscape, the cars in the
parking lot, and regretting the move. My 20yr old daughter tried to turn my
attitude around before my husband even made it to our car but to no avail. When
we walked into the apartment, I continued my complaints I mentioned earlier and
added the apartment to the mix. I wasn’t grateful but hurtful, complaining of
the size, the layout, and even the beige colored walls. I was horrible. I was
doing everything I told my daughter not to and didn’t even feel bad about it
until the next day when the movers arrived to empty the truck…but it was
already said and done. I turned things around and decided to make Nineveh my
home but I felt bad and knew I could not unsay or get a “do over” for that
first night.
This blog
started merely as an outlet to share pictures of how I decorated our first
place in Nineveh, but as a “Kate”, I always want full disclosure and never want
to give the impression that I am perfect by any means. I am definitely not the
same person I was when moving to Nineveh five years ago and always argue that
if Jonah had more than four chapters, I’m certain that he would have come
around too…but my mom says otherwise. I think she may be right. Some people
never come around and some people never see their wrongs and turn things
around. All I can do now, is to always do better than the day before; we can
always hit the reset button and never have to live in the hole we dig for
ourselves…it just takes a little bit of humility on our part and patience and forgiveness
from the other part.
Below are
pictures of our first apartment in Nineveh; about as colorful as I dared to go
in that first beige home. Needless to say…I am quite comfortable in Nineveh
now; so much so, that we are preparing to retire and spend the
rest of our lives here, in Oklahoma.
This was our entire sitting room and the sofa hubby purchased before we arrived.
My first furniture redesign; I love decorating with black to ground a room.
Our kitchen was small but loved the punch it had with a few accessories.
We didn't use bar stools so I added clocks in different time zones.
Found this set of chair pictures at a grocery store in Michigan before moving.
View of dining room; I created a "hall" with the sofa to create its own space.
The round table made the space seem bigger visually than a rectangle table would have.
I used IKEA bookshelves for function and interest on an otherwise bland corner.
Love family photo gallery walls in black and white; clearly this one wasn't finished yet. Lol
I was clearly into a very Pottery Barn look at the time we moved to Nineveh.
Found this interesting piece just before moving to Nineveh; loved the shape and versatility.
I love how vintage pieces made this apartment feel a little more like a "home."
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