Washington D.C. kept calling me. Seriously I kept having the feeling over and over that I needed to be there. It was a stupid feeling, one that I was sure that was just an "eventual" ending.
Nope...it was immediate and maybe crazy but definitely not stupid. Inspiration from the Lord is NEVER stupid. I just didn't realize it until 10:00 at night on a Monday in January. To be specific it was Monday, January 11, 2010. Ben had been unemployed for almost 1 month.
I was out with some of my best girl friends. I discussed with them how I kept feeling prompted and driven to go to Washington. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Washington D.C. It just isn't the place you head when your husband has lost his job and you have no income coming in. Basically you try and stay home and hold onto any cash you can so you can pay your bills at that point. Well that is what I thought logically.
My wise friend said to me, "Tauni go. Go now. If you are feeling prompted, follow that prompting. Go home, pray with Ben. If it is right, get in the car and drive." Her words rang in my ears and ran straight to my heart. I KNEW what she was saying was exactly what the Lord had been telling me but hearing it said out loud was a WHOLE new experience.
I think Ben thought I had seriously taken some crazy pills and fallen off the wagon when I walked in the door. As I told him of my promptings and that we needed to pray about it, tears poured from my eyes.
The prayer was one of the most powerful prayers I have ever been apart of. The Spirit pierced my soul and the answer of "Leave NOW" radiated through my soul. When the prayer was finished, Ben turned to me and said, "We need to get ready and we need to go". I was terrified.
In our kitchen cupboard, in a silly little mug, I had been hoarding money.
December 18, 2009 Ben was officially fired from the FAA. Christmas was a bleak week away. Luckily, everything had already been purchased and we had kept it small. Even with all that I was still nervous. At Christmas, my parents and in-laws had both been greatly inspired to give cash. The Lord is AMAZING. He prepares us for situations even before we know we will have them. All our Christmas cash was squirreled away in that silly little mug.
As my mind was reeling on why the Lord would ask us to go to Washington D.C., I thought of our little mug with just over a thousand dollars in it. Grateful that I hadn't spent any of the money on wants, I went and pulled out the cash. Carefully counting again the sum came to $1,120.
It was late and I started to wonder if my feelings of inspiration were really just feelings of desire for vacation and need to get away added with fatigue. Ben and I went to bed for the night.
I didn't sleep much. Many times in the night I would pray again to my Father in Heaven asking him if we were to go to Washington D.C. Once again I would get the overwhelming warmth and feeling...yes, go and go now!
I think the ONLY thing that helped me really understand that feeling was the week before the experience Ben and I had at the temple. It was a rushed session for us but one filled with the Spirit. As we pulled out into the snowy streets after the session, racing to get the kids from the babysitter who had other commitments, we both walked away knowing something BIG was coming and coming soon.This was it...this was our something BIG and we both knew it.
The next day was a rush and blur. We went to my parents and informed them, we went to Ben's parents and informed them. I called the school and got Katy on educational leave. We finished laundry and packing.
The biggest concern we had: we didn't have a time frame. We had NO clue of knowing how long we were to be gone. This was NOT a planned vacation. We had high hopes that this was our future, Ben's new career.
Looking back now I can DEFINITELY see how it got us to where we are now and how this was the best journey we ever took. I just wish I could have been more at ease and less on edge. If i had known then what I know now...I would like to think I would but honestly I don't know. It was a learning experience for me!
Wednesday morning, January 13, we finished packing up and headed out the door on a long drive and adventure across the United States of America. The girls were excited.Ben and I were scared, hopeful, prayerful and everything else.
We were in Wyoming when phone calls started coming in.
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