{09.26.2008} Friday Melange

This is it...my last day in Bloomington, IL. As I've mentioned in an earlier post, I knew this day was going to be bittersweet. On one hand, I am so happy to be finally moved back to Chicago, on the other hand, I'm sad about leaving a great town and community.

So, in that vein, I will share a (cheesy alert! cheesy alert!)..."Letter to Bloomington/Normal", from the Abrahams.

Dear Bloomington/Normal,

Thank you for all you have taught our family and allowed us to experience in the last 4 years. When we moved here we had never seen so many corn fields and yet so many new houses. We had never seen so many pickup trucks and yet so many business professionals driving said pickup trucks. We had never watched the 5 o'clock evening news that started with stories about "nice things" rather than the number of killings or robberies that might have taken place throughout the day. We had never seen a huge, modern, corporate complex, literally surrounded by farmland and cows.

Its obvious you're doing something right. From the old timers in town we heard stories about all of the expansion over the years and yet even in the 4 short years we've lived here we've seen even more expansion. For example, when we moved here there was no Starbucks, Krispy Kreme, Rosati's, Meijer, Potbelly, Noodles & Co., Hollister & Co., or nice mall. Now there are three Starbucks, two Rosati's, a Meijer, 2 Potbelly's, 2 Noodles & Co. and a very nice mall with great stores. We felt at home, while not being "home".

It was here in Bloomington that we as a family celebrated Jason's and Susan's 30th birthdays, our 5th wedding anniversary and most importantly the birth of our daughter Isabelle.

We helped plant a Harvest Bible Chapel in Peoria, and made lasting relationships there. We both made significant contributions to State Farm via our jobs, and built great relationships there as well.

We've lived in 2 houses, met great neighbors and had great conversations with friends over the dinner table. Our lives will never be the same because we had a chance to slow down and experience community in a different way. We took part in local events and again experienced the genuine "goodness" of people.

Again, thanks for allowing us to make this our home for the past four years. We will always have a special place in our heart for this town.

With genuine love and gratitude,

The Abraham Family.

Oh, and by the way. The re>ROOT is now complete.