Where The Heart Is

Published on by J. Kelland Perry

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I can hardly believe it. It’s been nearly five years since my husband and I went through with our plan to trade in our old lives and move out of the city.

In August of 2010, we threw caution to the wind and put our home of ten years on the market. Paul kissed me goodbye, drove to his hometown, and began overseeing the gargantuan job of renovating his grandfather’s old two-storey in Bonavista North. When the sale of our house closed near the end of September, Maisie, Vivian and I joined him. We stayed nearby in a friend’s vacant summer home until the bulk of the work was completed.

During the first week of December that year, we finally had enough upgrades done to buy our new appliances, unpack the boxes, and begin to set up house.

Do I have any regrets? Not many. That first winter, I missed living close to my family, and I still wish I could see my children and grandchildren more often than I do. But other than that, I am happy to have relocated here to our home by the sea. Somehow, I don’t think I would have taken up writing the way I have if I’d stayed in the city, so taking this journey to fulfill my lifelong dream has certainly made it all worthwhile.

Besides that, Paul’s dream to return to his boyhood home has come true too. ❤

Looking back now, I think we can both vouch for the old saying: the best journey is the one that takes you home.

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Have you lived to see a dream come to fruition?
Or are you working on one for the future?

43 thoughts on “Where The Heart Is”

  2. Lovely post about change and simply going for it in a big way. Im pleased you are happy. I think there are always one or two negatives among the many positives, like moving away from family etc, but it sounds like you have made the right choice. You say you may not have written as you do if you had stayed in the city. I’m almost certain I wouldn’t have started writing if not for my diagnosis. A huge dream has come to fruition for me in my book being published; I had the book launch last week, a wonderful happening beyond my wildest dreams 😊

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    1. I think that inspiration for writing can come from adversity as well as positive events, that’s for certain. Losing my parents far before I was ready may have a lot to do with it too, because it framed a new philosophy for me: our days are numbered and the time is now.
      I’m so happy for you too, that you realized a dream with your beautiful poetry being published. So exciting and a meaningful step in your development as a writer and poet.

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  5. I love the postcard and words Jennifer. They really touched my heart. I never had a dream to live in the States, make wonderful friends, marry an American and create a beautiful home and garden …. but perhaps my soul knew different. 😉

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    1. Val, it’s nice to hear you found happiness over on this side of the pond. Perhaps Fate did know best.

      I’m thinking of making more of my little postcards in future blog posts, using my own photos and prose, instead of sharing someone else’s creations as so many do. I like to be original. 😉

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  6. I feel so happy for you and your husband !! Maybe someday, when my son is all grown up and my husband and I’ll find our little corner someplace quiet and peaceful, far away from the city. We’ll have to wait for at least 10 years 🙂

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  7. Gorgeous post, Jennifer. I can’t get over how beautiful the blues are in your pictures. I’ve had similar thoughts about the creative influence my own move (from just over five years ago) has had on my writing. Our country home kept me too busy to write as much as I do now. Driving kids to town for lessons or meetings was exhausting etc. and the property and wood stoves kept me hopping. I would say our move has brought the whole family closer to our dreams.
    Blessings & hugs ~ Wendy ❀

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  8. Migration from city hustle to rural tranquility, from polluted environs to cleaner air and water, no wonder you are enjoying the prospect of transition to new life, Jennifer. May it keep you healthy and creatively glowing….

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  9. I true leap of faith–that had to have been so exciting! The views you have….I would thank God every day for allowing this to happen. So happy for you that it did. And that Vivian and Maisie were OK with the move.

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    1. Thanks, Lois! It was so funny at first, when the cats were afraid of the sound of the ocean and the wind when we went outside with them. They would creep around with their bellies almost touching the ground, they were so cautious. But they got over that quickly. Now they dearly love it.

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  12. It’s so much more rewarding when risks work out so well and with so much happiness. Being away from family would cause me to pause but maybw they’ll come and join you one day close by..:) unless the distance works for you…:)

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    1. I hear you. Things may have worked out unfavorably, but thankfully we have had much to be grateful for. And the distance from family is not great; it only seemed so at first because I was used to seeing them often.

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    1. Although I never had the honour of meeting either of them, I’m sure it would have made Mr. and Mrs. Perry very happy to know their grandson returned and restored the house. Thanks, Jacqui. x

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    1. It was a huge leap, and certainly not for everyone. It was not something I would have done ten or twenty years earlier, as I was very much a city girl then. But never say never, because you don’t know when your mindset can change. Wishing you the best if you do take that big move. 🙂

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  17. Jennifer you are in the zone and where you are suppose to be. I often wonder would I have pursued these crazy dreams and taken on so many courses if I was caught up in a city life. I know I am where I am suppose to be too, even though life on a farm does not have all the mod cons or plush comforts. Your dreams are coming true and it inspires me to cling to mine and work that extra bit harder. Very excited watching you take flight.

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    1. Kath, I love the way you put that. I just came in from watching the terns and gannets swooping around the Point. Watching them in flight, and then I read your metaphor. I believe we are both where we were destined to be. The peacefulness here allows me to think and create with no interruptions. Oh sure, there are trade-offs, but in the grand scheme I wouldn’t change much of anything.
      Thanks for all the support you continue to bestow on me. ❤

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