Love where you are

This Sunday, I heard a talk and it reminded me of a moment in my life.  About six years ago, I was in a very different job.  It was hard for me, I was unhappy, I did not like what I was doing.  I used to come home at night crying because I was so unhappy.  My husband (who has always loved me and supported me) wanted me to quit.  The problem was that I had nearly 20 years working for the same company, and I was the main support for our family.  There was no way that I could walk out.
So, we started to pray.  We prayed that I would find a job where I could work and be happy.  We prayed that our family would be safe.  We prayed that Heavenly Father would guide us.  Within a week, a job posting came out for a small town up in the mountains.
This town was somewhere that we drove through several times each summer.  It was a place that we had often dreamed of retiring to.  It was in the mountains, in the cool pines, and in a small town.  I asked my husband what I should do.  He said simply, "put in your application".  I worried about what he would do, but he promised that he could work anywhere and it would not matter.  So I sent my application into the personnel office.  I waited, and after several months, I still had not heard anything.  By this time, I knew that I had to do something, so I started putting in for lots of different jobs and I kept praying and I planned on doing whatever my Heavenly Father wanted me to do.
I interviewed several times and no one hired me.  I was pretty discouraged.  Then I had two interviews back to back.  One was for the job in the small town, and one was for a job two miles from my house.  I thought that I wanted to one close to my house because I would not have to move, my husband could keep his job, and I would be closer to my grand-children.
It was a few months later before I was finally offered the job that I have today.  I was so worried about it.  I had people who told me that I wouldn't like small towns.  That my children wouldn't get a good education.  That they had more of a chance of being on drugs and getting pregnant.  That they would never get into good colleges.  In short, all I heard about the upcoming move was that it would be negative for my family.
To make matters even worse, the housing market crashed and houses weren't selling.
We had never stopped praying, and we felt so strongly that we needed to proceed with the move.
So we did.  I moved up first, John sold the house (which sold the first week in a market where homes weren't selling)  John worked until the fall and then moved up with me and the girls.  We discovered that we love small town life.
We discovered our family time again.
We discovered that mom could be calm and peaceful.
We discovered that God would provide a way.
We discovered great teachers and wonderful friends.
There are bad things about living anywhere.  But I really believe that our own attitudes make or break the place we choose as home.  Our Heavenly Father wanted us to live in this small town, and He opened doors and provided the way for it to happen.  The most amazing thing that I have learned is simply to trust.  To believe that He knows what is best for us.  And to trust that He will calm the winds and waves of the storm in our lives.
The most important thing that we have realized in all of this is how much joy there can be in living and learning together.  For me, trusting my Heavenly Father has made all the difference.