Jan 14, 2014 at 05:02 pm
Flying to Washington
Update posted by Barbara SherI'm delighted to tell you that things are now looking very promising for Mary Ann. Thanks to people's generosity here, funds for her move back home to Washington are coming in steadily, and we hope to pass the half-way mark very soon.
But money isn't the only way people have helped. A kind-hearted woman with airline connections read about this campaign, and offered to help Mary Ann fly standby to Washington for free. So she decided to go on a two-week exploratory trip.
After a lot of discussing and planning and arranging, she got on a plane on January 9 and landed back in her home place for the first time in many years.
While there, her plan is to meet with old friends and new contacts, and explore all sorts of possibilities for work to do and places to live in the Seattle area when she finally moves back home in the spring.
Here are some extracts from the email she sent me:
Dear BarbaraI am e-mailing you from a library computer on Bainbridge Island to let you know that I arrived safely here on BainbridgeI want this to be a life-changing trip. And it will be! I can feel it in the air!When I looked out the plane as we were descending into the Sea-Tac airport, and saw all the fir trees, and how green it was, I just started to bawl. And when I got up this morning to make my morning prayers and saw cedar tree branches bobbing up and down in the rain, I just cried and cried uncontrollably for half an hour. I couldn't even pray for awhile. That's the depth of the homesickness.I am determined to move back up here. And now there's backup! A day or so before I left, I called a friend and have just found out that I don't have to pay a huge second rent and huge deposit equal to the rent to get into an apartment. And that's very exciting news! ...Wheweeee!And, over on the mainland, I have discovered a place which I'm going to e-mail right after this that will rent me office space when I want it later on, so that I can set up a private practice. WOW! COOL!I may be able to generate more news bulletins as things advance. I just have to keep track of the itinerary details, keep the little ship afloat, and keep going places and meeting people and continuing to continue. I am determined to move back up here, even if I have to shuck clams for a living. We'll see what's next.
You can see how happy and excited Mary Ann is to feel that her dream is starting to become reality. And she is very very thankful to everyone who is helping to make this happen.
