I knew we were getting close.

I am not good with dates and anniversaries and numbers in general, but could sense the times lining up.

The slant of sunlight coming in through the shutters in the morning, the weight and density of the humid air. The increased buzzing of insects, the frequency of mid day thunderstorms.

All a reminder that we have been here before.

Occupied this same square on the calendar, lived these languid summer days once already.

A year (and a few weeks) ago, we finally made it to Georgia.

To Brunswick.

To the Narwhal.

To our new beginning.

A year (and a few weeks ago) I was handed the keys to our new old house. I remember being just a touch disappointed because the keys were so….ordinary. They looked just like the keys I had left behind in Arizona. I expected such a big life change would come with a symbol just as momentous.

But they were just keys.

What they opened however, was the prize.

I remember the clink of the lock. The creek of the door. The smell of the humid air, just a bit on the musty side. I remember the excitement and the relief. The panic and the calm. The ending and the beginning.

I catch a bit of that mustiness now, it must be a seasonal thing, as dampness hangs heavy in the summer air.

Condensation heavy on old glass windows early in the morning now as it was then. Cocooning is in our own little world until the sun burns through and burns it off.

It feels like we are right back at the beginning. Dejavu as moments begin to repeat for the first time and set the pattern for time to come.

I feel anxious sometimes.

When I see how far we have yet to go. See boxes still piled in some of the rooms. Realize we have not moved as quickly through this process as I thought we would. Realize that most of the finished rooms live, for now, only in my head.

But the excitement far outweighs the trepidation. Even still. Even now as the world beyond these walls feels most days like it is falling apart. I know this house has weathered many trips around the sun. Felt the world ending more than once or twice. Has remained standing. Has protected those inside.

I celebrate our first year here knowing life is not perfect. Knowing there is much still left to be done. Knowing that the schedule I have in my mind will come to fruition in its own time. Knowing that there is no place o would rather be. Knowing that I am home.