We are in a year of firsts in Lansing, with the first woman leading the State Senate and the first African American Speaker of the House.  These firsts are historic and will live on in the history of Michigan government and politics.  For many of us our “firsts” are not as historic, but have deep meaning and remain in our consciousness forever.

There are certain life-changing events that are the most stressful; changing jobs, having a child, and getting married.  Another is building a house.  This may only be done once, for that is enough for most.  For my family, the process of building was an adventure.  Our journey started with my wife finding the perfect piece of property. Next, we had to sell our current house and then start building the new one.  Fortunately, the state was in a housing boom and our house sold in one day.  The problem was we had to be out of the house before our new one was ready, so temporary housing was needed.

Living in the small town where your wife grew up can have its advantages.  As we panicked to find a place to live, luck came upon us.  A couple had a house for rent not far from where our new home was being built.  At the time our children were two and four years old. The rental was ideal for the six months we would be there. It had bedrooms for everyone and it was roomy, except for the kitchen where we constantly had to move the dining room table in and out.  One bonus was the long hallway where I would throw a Nerf football with my son.  After we got settled in, we were surprised one Monday morning.  Our quiet country road was more like rush hour from 7-8 in the morning.  We later learned this was the main road for people living north of Lansing to head into town.  And 20 years later, our daughter still reminds us her bedroom was right across from the front door.

We moved into our new home on April 1^st in a driving rainstorm.  You would think that it was bad luck, but on the contrary, we have spent nearly 20 years in our home raising our children and building memories.  We still drive by that rental and appreciate it being our home for six months.  As I mentioned earlier this was not as historic as the events of the past few months, but much like those events, some of our smaller events can be significant firsts.

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