The Point Of No Return

Our home in Madison was extremely special to us. The location was perfect, its character was distinctive, and we loved our neighbors. This home also marked a new beginning for us in many ways. We created special memories that will last a lifetime. It was very tough to say goodbye, but we knew it was time to move on. 

When we put our house on the market in August of 2018 we were not really sure what price it would fetch. We agreed on a price with our realtor.  Without realizing it, my expectations were set.  Not only was our asking price way off base, my expectations were as well.  As I have come to learn, expectations are simply premeditated resentments. This certainly proved true during this process.  

Early on there were 2-3 showings a day. We had many showings, but there was always something that prevented an offer.  The most stressful aspect was cleaning the house, packing up the dogs and getting Colleen in the truck before the showing.

There was a local park we used to drive to and wait until the showing was complete. One day we had multiple showings and followed the same routine. On the last showing of the day I was pulling into the park. I could hear that dreaded guttural lurching sound that dog owners are all too familiar with. Veruca was not well and now was the time the stomach volcano was about to erupt. What came to mind was not the wellbeing of our dog, but the fact she was about to pollute our new truck!

There was nothing we could do but hear (and smell) the nauseating drama take place. We love this sweet dog, but one character defect she has is eating poop. It smelled like a backed up toilet exploded in our truck. This is when the “stressor cooker” exploded. I was absolutely incensed. Yes this incident was not pleasant, but it was not our dogs act that caused my explosion, it was the stress that I had no idea how to handle.

After the first couple dozen showings, we were no longer excited to hear what the potential buyers thought.  We were deflated. The story was often the same. We liked X and Y, but Z is a deal breaker. At some point I decided it was going to happen in good time. 

Our plan was to leave Wisconsin by the first week in December if we had an accepted offer or not. Our rig was scheduled to be completed by the end of the month and we wanted to take our time visiting family and friends on our way. By the end of November we had cleared out the house and said our goodbyes. We were ready to get started on our new life. We hit the road on November 30th.

Before we left, I asked my friend Joe to check on the house for us periodically. An interesting thing happened. After we left, the house was rarely on my mind. It was literally out of sight, out of mind. The only time it came to mind was when Joe gave me an update or I spoke with our realtor. I believe living in the middle of the chaos greatly contributed to our stress and frustration.

About three weeks after we left, we received an offer.  It wasn’t close to what we were asking. We were happy to finally have a serious offer, but we were depressed about the amount. After discussing it, we felt it was time to let this part of our life go. It soon became clear the house was placed in our path to serve a purpose for that time in our life. It was simply a stepping stone leading us along our life’s pathway. 

As closing day was approaching and it appeared we had a done deal, Colleen and I were on a walk one day.  I told her “We are at a point of no return”. Then I asked “Are you happy we made the move”?  She gave me a big smile and a thumbs up.  That’s all I needed to confirm we were headed in the right direction.