Decision Made

When we set out to come here, we had always said we would stay for a year and then decide whether we were going to make it a permanent move or come back to Canada. Well, we’ve come to the point where the decision has been made: we’re heading back to Canada.

This has been a difficult choice for all of us. In a way I hoped it would be a difficult choice, because it means that you’re choosing amongst good options. If it was an easy choice, then something has gone wrong somewhere. We have really enjoyed our time in Bristol, but we have all felt that Vancouver is the place for us for the long-term.

We’re going to miss it here, although we still have several months before we head back. We will miss our family here – wherever we are we are always apart from some of our family. We will also miss Bristol Vineyard – we have felt such a great connection and friendship with the church since we came.

I have to say that the process of working through a decision like this has been really good. When you allow yourself to consider both the practical aspects as well as the emotional aspects of life choices, you settle on a decision not in a moment but over time. Working this through as a couple, you want to come to a mutual decision – if one tries to persuade the other, that only creates problems when things get difficult after the decision is made. Going through this process has been good for our marriage.

So we’re both looking forward to going back, and sad to leave – it feels bittersweet but then that’s the way it should be.