Things take time, don’t they? Moving to a new town doesn’t take long. That’s the straightforward and quick part. Getting settled in the new community, finding where we fit in the new landscape, and becoming a part of the ‘fabric’ of that new community takes much longer.

Chris, my partner, and I left the big city for a small community on Vancouver Island a few years ago. We - Chris mostly - spent the first couple of years renovating the house and the garden. Most of our travel was between the house and Home Depot, with the occasional foray to explore our new territory. We got to know our neighbors casually and made contact with other acquaintances from Vancouver who had also moved to the area.