On this New Year's Week, I'm poignantly reminded that one never knows where the sun's annual path may take us. A year ago today I was ecstatic about my upcoming facilitator retreat with The Peaceful Woman, a retreat company in Hawaii. And though I hadn't told anyone yet--and barely believed it myself--I harbored a magical secret: that I would also be moving to Maui! That knowing came true on May 19 when I moved to the lush, misty-eyed town of Haiku and took up residence with two enchanting women, Karren Louise and Linda. What I thought was a long-distance decision turned out to be a sprint, ending in late September. As I made preparation for a trip back to the Mainland for my third grandchild's birth and my Mom's 90th birthday celebration and book launch (See announcement below), my inner voice spoke in that softly insistent way it has, informing me that my return to Maui was unknown...instead of the hot date I'd already made with Alaska Air.

So I put my things in storage in Kahalui and assured my Maui community of the truth as I knew it: I would be back no later than the first of the year. That was my interpretation of "unknown." How could it possibly be any longer than that?

But tonight I am sitting in my sweet little condo in Newberg, Oregon. On December 16 (my 63rd birthday), my dear friend Sandi and I packed up a 10-foot Budget truck with all the belongings I didn't rid myself of when I moved to Maui. Late that night I picked up my lately-adopted daughter, Donna, at the airport and when morning came (my mother's birthday), she and I set out to make Oregon my new spring, summer and fall home. Winters I plan to resume a Hawaiian address. After all, I grew up in Midwest winters and have no desire to experience even Portland's imitation of those raw, bone-cold days.