People have asked how we’re settling in to our new home in Ramat Beit Shemesh, so here’s the update!
Right now I’m feeling uncomfortable and unsettled. It’s normal to be uncomfortable and unsettled after you move! I’m giving myself a year to get acclimated. Of course it would be wonderful if the kids all had friends and I had friends and I knew where to go for whatever I needed as well as how to get there. But for now I don’t and it’s okay for it to take time.
Life is busy and while I appreciate any and all efforts to welcome us, I know that I can’t expect those who are already here to reach out to me. I need to be proactive and reach out to others. I was sick for the last couple of weeks and had very, very little energy but now that I’m feeling better I’m thinking about how to best do that.
Despite the short term discomforts of moving, everyone is happy we moved here! We love our new apartment, my husband and older boys quickly found a shul that they’re comfortable at, there’s a weekly homeschool meetup that we’re participating in and I love that it’s so much easier for our older kids to get home to spend Shabbos with us with their travel time being drastically cut down!
I could go on at length about the challenges of moving and I could also go on at length about the things that I love about being here, but instead I’ll say that while it will take time until I’m fully settled in, I can see that there’s a lot of potential for connection and contribution here.
Avivah
I’m so sorry you were sick! I was wondering if everything was ok when I didn’t see you post for a while. I am glad you are feeling better!! I hope your time to be comfortable in your new community takes a lot less than a year! Continued good health! Good Shabbos!
Thanks, R! I’m already loving living here and my kids are so happy so I think it will take less than a year! But at the same time I want to have realistic expectations and I’m cautious about giving the impression that moving is easy and effortless. It’s not and while I’m very, very positive about our move, I don’t want to downplay the reality that moving is a big challenge because someone might read what I write and think that there’s something wrong with them if they feel disconnected and out of sorts after moving.
Good luck settling in! now to bombard with questions– (sorry)
How many people in RBS are homeschooling? Do people from surrounding areas come as well? Are there other anglos in the group? What has the local reaction to your homeschooling been?
I’ll post answers to this in a post later today, Shuli!
Thank you for this post – it will certainly help all of us soon-to-be-Olim have realistic expectations!