Starting at the beginning

My laziness caused me to rush through and only write tidbits of the move. With a month of writing stretching before me I'd do well to tell my stories in their more wholesome avatars. So here are two intertwined stories - of our decision to move and within it how our Kid coped.

Our move was sudden, no years or months of planning went into it. I'd say I just about felt totally at home and in control of my life in Singers when the offer to move came. We could have said no but V and I, well we are always up for an adventure. And much as we love our family and friends in Singapore the cold harsh reality of life is that these are the best years to live in new places and line our nest egg if possible. So when an opportunity offers you better and new and all considerations like excellent schools and healthcare permit it, it would be foolish not to at least consider the offer.

Kid was in an excellent school and that was my biggest sadness; leaving an institution not just THAT well regarded but also one where Kid felt at home and we felt part of a community. He was thriving and for him the wrench would be greatest. Leaving school, his condo friends and most of all his 'brother' P (1st cousin extraordinaire, cousin in genetics only as he is what made Singapore home for Kid) were certainly going to be cause for sadness.

So pros and cons were carefully and quickly measured and all factors considered. We thought about it over a few evenings and after much discussion decided it would be a good idea so long as we could sort out the school situation.

Looked through many a school choice over the next few nights and narrowed it down to 4 suitable ones. Quick calls revealed that all 4 would be willing to accept applications but that 3 of them already said we would be on impossibly long waiting lists unless we had corporate debentures. We didn't do it was a mere exercise in throwing away our money in the hope of a miracle.  The 4th (and our 1st choice of school) told us to submit documents and come in for an assent before they could put us on a wait list. Apparently Grade 1 is crazy busy.!

We did it. Got all the papers together and got his current teacher to directly send in her reports. Then we booked ourselves a 2 day trip and told Kid we were going to check out the school because we might move. Cue the tears. 

Now I am much more a 'validate your feelings kind of person' so my tack was its ok to feel sad and cry but this is reality and we are moving. V is much more the pragmatist - 'we are moving, come on lets go play Lego.' Of course in the darkness before bedtime I had the plethora of questions and comments - mainly in the vein of 'I will miss P, I will miss school, I don't want to go etc'. I carried on in my vein of feel your feelings/  this is life/ where our family lives is home/ people move all the time/ this is how we can say goodbye/ keep in touch/ family is always family/ friendships are forever etc.

Between our two approaches Kid processed whatever he needed to and as a result went into his school assessment for an hour believing he was going to show them everything he had learnt and how doing their puzzles was going to be fun. He knew it was for the possible move and I arranged to have a quick walk around the school with him before the assessment. We talked about the old school and this one in tandem - comparing all the fine features. He came out from the assessment beaming and the assessor said they would let us know in early June about a spot on the wait list. 

I fully expected to be put on a wait list for Grade 2 in August 2016. We then discussed with V's Company that Kid and I would continue in Singapore till an appropriate school place became available while V commuted. In principal they agreed. 

Back to Singapore and birthday party was arranged for before the summer escape vacation began. Last day of May and as I prepped the party V called to say they had offered us a place. And so it was that we spent the birthday party saying goodbye to school friends. June and July too passed in a whirr of goodbyes and farewells and sorting through our lives and returning to apartment hunt and wading through the sheer administrative burden of a move. 

The start of August saw us here in Hong Kong, ready for this chapter '@ home in Hong Kong'.