The Artisan Post

Every journey begins with a first step. Sometimes that means a first physical step as in the first step in a long hike, and other times it means a first preparational step into a different kind of journey. In AJ’s case, we took a first step towards his big move to Peterborough. A few days back, we were given the opportunity to visit Peterborough to scope things out.

The weather was pleasant the day we went. No wind, no rain, no snow, and not even bright sunshine. It was a day of dry roads and smooth cruising on the highways… without much traffic! And with a good podcast and a few favourite songs played, we were in Peterborough in no time.

It was easy enough to find Stewart Homes… it’s a property within the city limits in one of the suburbs on a corner lot. It has 3 homes located on one site, all of them connected by a pavestone courtyard and pathways, and gazebos available for warmer weather. AJ liked all of the smooth pavestone areas within the property and the adjacent city sidewalks that conveniently led into a section of the city that had a mall and one of his favourite restaurants, KFC. I think he already pictured himself cruising down the sidewalk to pop over for some tasty chicken.

We were met outside by the fellow who would be his home supervisor, and one of the main managers. They directed us into the “Seagal House”, which will be the home AJ will move into, and toured us around. We were pleasantly surprised in that the home was neat and spacious and totally set up for wheelchairs as most residents there have one. We also met a few staff who were very friendly and caring. We were brought to what would become AJ’s room… it was very spacious and had window with a view to the courtyard. All the other residents in the home shared rooms, but AJ gets his own room!

We went back outside after our tour and chatted a bit more about all of the fun activities available for AJ to do. Things like the mall and KFC (as already mentioned, but needed mentioning again), a reptile zoo, a riverboat cruise and a tour to the largest locks, a new cat-cuddle room at the local SPCA, and a few others things that I can’t remember. But all in all, lots of neat stuff for him to do over time.

AJ was getting excited about all of what he was seeing and hearing. He was sounding very positive about making the move, which really encouraged us as well. Of course, it’s not hard to get excited when so much positive stimuli is coming at you, and we recognize emotions still may fluctuate, but we all left feeling a little bit better about the overall situation. We said farewell and that we’d see them back soon. The official move date had been finalized now… it will be February 13th.

Before we made our trip home for the day, we made one more stop in Peterborough. We wanted to meet pastor Alex and his wife and kids from Hill City Baptist Church. This is the church where we hope AJ will seek membership when he moves. The world is too big of a place to not be surrounded by a spiritual family. So we stopped by and said hello and made acquaintances. As we were leaving, Pastor Alex said, “AJ, so many people at church are already excited to meet you!” All this added to our encouragement of the day.

It’s all a lot to take in for a first step. Especially for AJ. But it was a first step, a big one, an important one, to be able to help ease into something new. And as with any journey, once you take that first step, there are more to follow.

Back home here in Smithville, there are a few steps to take before AJ makes the final big move step… there are appointments with family and friends, a few outings, a little bit of school here and there, a farewell open house, some packing, and a few other little things. And so we go, step by step, making this big faith journey into new territory… trusting God is already there ahead of us preparing the way.

Peterborough, here we come… but not just yet.