It’s Thanksgiving. No gathering here. It’s a day of packing for our next move.

We leave our mountain habitat and trade it for a space near Lake Chatuge, much closer to our build. Even though there is not shovel in our dirt, we count this move as an inch closer to where we want to be. Next year, if my turkey wish-bone wish comes true, we’ll be in our new home with a turkey on the table and family all around.

Of course - with all the OOPS in the building world - we might not have windows or floors or wall, but by gosh, we’ll eat turkey at Possum Hollow! Ironically, we are no further along that we were on July 1 when we left Mayne Mill and landed on this mountain top. Granted, we met with lots of obstacles along the way - ones that honestly, I believe were necessary in order to make this journey a success. What doesn’t kill us makes us stronger, and Steel Magnolias knows. We remain grateful. We’re reused our Home Depot boxes and I think we could shoot a commercial with all this branding on boxes. With each breath, I pray that our new places provides warmth and safety. And that’s all this move is - a step forward. Nothing more.

Gratitude, in whatever form and to what degree, keeps us humble and reminds us of who is in charge.