I Will Never be too Old to Welcome Positive Change

Written by MJ Reporter Willow LaMunyon

When was the last time you moved? If you move frequently, it might feel like hard work and not much more. If you stay put, moving is a big deal.

I moved twice when I was too young to remember and twice more while still living with my parents. After I was married, I moved seven times and finally returned to my parent's home after their passing. In seventy-five years, that isn't often. The two common things among my moves are that I didn't have much choice in the homes' location, and second, they were always in Enid, Oklahoma.

Enid is a nice town with plenty to do, jobs to be had, and where I still have family and friends. Even with all that going for it, I felt the need to live somewhere else. Somewhere that had trees, hills, and no sad memories attached. My life had changed drastically after my husband died, and when a few years passed, I knew it was time for me to choose the place.

I have family in Okmulgee. So, moving there wouldn't cause me to start my new life as a stranger to everyone. There are trees and hills enough to make it beautiful. It was what I had been looking for since I was old enough to be aware of location.

With only a weekend to either find a house to buy or rent a storage place for my belongings, I strongly suspected I was going to rent a storage unit and stay in my granddaughter's spare room for a while.

I checked out Zillow and called a random realtor to show me my chosen houses. The first few didn't fit my deal-breaker requirement of a house that wasn't right next to any neighbors. That was on Friday. The next day my family went house shopping with me. The first few houses were not what I had in mind, then the heavens opened, and angels sang. Okay, it wasn't quite that big, but the second day I saw my house. My family expressed doubt that I still had my sanity when we walked into the house with the ugliest wallpaper any of us had ever seen and curtains to challenge the wallpaper for ugly.

We looked at a few more houses, but I knew I had already found my dream house. On day three, arrangements were made for me to rent the house until the sale could go through.

On February 29th, 2019, I drove to Okmulgee with my furniture sitting in a moving truck in Enid due to the weather. I wouldn't get it until the following Monday,

The relator was too busy to take me to my new home. I didn't need him, so I grabbed the key and finally found home using my GPS. However, I didn't remember that falling apart wood fence or the bad roof. I needed to buck up because it was mine now, and the rest of the house still looked good.

I tried to open the door, but my key didn't fit. Hey, wait a minute, what was that swimming pool doing in my backyard? I was positive there hadn't been one there before. I peeked in a window, and someone else had moved into my house, or I had the wrong address.

After parking in the driveway two houses down, I was home. There was no time to settle in because I had a bed to buy. I had passed a furniture store on the way into town. I bought my bed along with sheets and pillows. Then after getting a little lost, I drove home and waited for the delivery of the bed. Now I was really at home with no food, chairs, or TV, but it felt great. I studied the paint samples I picked up while getting my sheets and imagined how each room was going to look.

The next morning my family surprised me with enough donuts to feed a school full of teenagers. It was a memorable day as the kids took me shopping for a small table for my kitchen and a couple of chairs, I was going to replace them later, but they looked so good I never did, even though it was outdoor furniture. My daughter-in-law and I relaxed in the kitchen and enjoyed the view out the window. It is peaceful, beautiful, hilly, and with trees everywhere. I soaked in the knowledge that it was my new home, my new adventure.

Now, three years later, that very good start has led to so many wonderful adventures and new friends that I know I was indeed not too old to change my entire lifestyle. I am too old to be as active as I had been in the past and too old to feel comfortable in youthful clothing. I'm too old to do the wallpaper removing and painting myself. I'm too old or maybe just don't want to go to work since I am retired anyway, but I will never be too old to welcome positive change no matter how drastic that change is.