Moving In

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Get more Nothing Much Happens with bonus episodes, extra long stories,
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and ad-free listening, all while supporting the show you love.
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Subscribe now. When I started Nothing Much Happens, I was
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giving us the tools we need to actually run the business.
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If you're ready to hear the cha-ching of your first
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trial at shopify.com slash nothingmuch. That's shopify.com slash nothingmuch. Welcome
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to Bedtime Stories for Everyone, in which... Nothing much happens.
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You feel good, and then you fall asleep. I'm Catherine Nicolai.
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I write and read all the stories you hear on
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Nothing Much Happens. Audio engineering is by Bob Wittersheim. We
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give to a different charity each week. And this week,
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we are giving to the true and faithful Pet Rescue Mission,
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making a difference in the lives of resilient, loving, and
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devoted senior dogs and giving them the forever homes they deserve.
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Learn more about them in our show notes. For ad-free,
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bonus content, or to join the virtual village through our app,
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go to nothingmuchappens.com. I lead a weekly live creative writing
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group through the app called The Writer's Room. If you've
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been looking for a sign to start or return to writing,
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maybe this is it. When you climb into bed, your mind,
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relieved of its duties for the day, can wander off
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and keep you up or even wake you up. It
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needs a bit of direction, a sort of scaffolding to
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build sleep on top of. And that's how bedtime stories work.
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I'll tell our story twice, and I'll go a little
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slower the second time through. All you have to do
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is listen. Some folks just need one story. Others need
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them to play all night long. Any way that it
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works for you is good. Our story tonight is called
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Moving In, and it's a story about a long drive
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in a packed car at the beginning of freshman year.
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It's also about paper cups of coffee, new towels and
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beloved memories, turning leaves on the commons, and the tender
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adventure of growing up and letting go. I've tried enough
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skin care at this point to know that a lot
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year now. And what keeps standing out to me is
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It's not one of those overnight dramatic things It's more
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that over time, I notice my skin is smoother, it
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looks more even, and there's just an overall radiance that
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I really love. And I appreciate that their approach is
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about skin health as we age, not pretending that aging
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itself is something we need to fix. Born from over
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After you purchase, they'll ask where you heard about them.
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Please support our show and tell them we sent you.
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It's time. Switch off your light. Set down anything you
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were looking at or working on. You have looked at
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a screen for the last time today. Snuggle down into
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your sheets and let every part of your body soften
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and relax. If you tend to clench your jaw, try
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resting the tip of your tongue where your upper teeth
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meet the gums on the inside. But first, take a
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deep breath in through your nose. Let it out your mouth. Nice.
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One more. Breathe in. And out. Good. Moving in. The
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station wagon was packed, and it had been unpacked and
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repacked twice already. We'd been putting things together all summer.
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A box of books here, a desk lamp and shower
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caddy there. And it hadn't seemed like much stuff when
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it came in a piece at a time. but as
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we began to wedge things into the back of the wagon,
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all of it seemed to have multiplied while we weren't looking.
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Sheets and comforter, pillows and a new book bag, laundry
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baskets full of clean, folded clothes, a bundle of hangers,
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shower slippers and toiletries, and favorite snacks to see her
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through study sessions. We fussed over how to arrange it all,
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doing our best to leave no hoodie or extension cord behind,
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though she was so much less worried about it all
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than we were, which, we supposed, was exactly how it
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should be. She was looking ahead to a year of adventure,
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new friends, new experiences. We were holding on to the
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rhythms of the life we'd lived together since we'd brought
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her home from the hospital in her car seat. It
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made making sure she had the shampoo she liked feel
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very important to us, less so to her. By mid-morning,
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only about an hour after we'd hoped to be on
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the road, we were finally pulling out of the driveway.
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She was in the middle of the back seat. buckled
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in between a fluffy new comforter and an awkward stack
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of running shoes, a hamper full of bath towels, and
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a small trash can currently storing a surge protector, her hairbrush,
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and four kinds of chargers. A neighbor who had babysat
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for her when she was little stopped by for a
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good luck hug and handed over a tray of coffee
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cups from the cafe and a bag of rolls and
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muffins from the bakery. So we each had a warm
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cup in hand as we made our way through the
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streets of our neighborhood. I was thinking about her riding
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her bike up and down these familiar blocks. Her in
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her Halloween costume running back to me on the sidewalk
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between each front porch to tell me what treat she'd gotten.
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Her running over the curb at the corner while she
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was learning to drive. I turned my face to the
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window and tried to take a deep breath, reminding myself
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that she would be home for Thanksgiving and never more
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than a few hours away. She reached her hand up
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from the back seat and squeezed my shoulder. and I
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leaned one damp cheek against it. She was good like that.
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Even so young still, she could be with me, with us,
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with her friends, the kids she coached in track, and
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just let us feel how we felt, not try to
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jostle us out of it before we were ready. Just
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stay a moment with us. I patted her hand with mine,
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sat up a bit taller in the passenger seat, rolled
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my shoulders back and sniffed. Sure, those weren't the last
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tears of the day. Still, I felt a little lighter
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for shedding them, for remembering how proud I was of her.
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the leaves at the tops of the trees along the
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highway were turning. And when we stopped for gas an
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hour out of town, and I stepped out of the
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car to stretch my legs, the breeze was cool and fresh.
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We wandered into the shop, and I laughed at myself,
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remembering the road trips when she was little. when we'd
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had to negotiate in these moments. One thing. She could
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get one thing. Not a drink and a candy bar.
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Not gum and chips. Just one. Now, I was offering
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her everything I saw. Was she hungry? Was she thirsty?
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I asked. Did she need one of these keychains with
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her initial on it? They have granola bars, I told her.
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I'm good, she said again and again. Yes, you are,
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I affirmed, and dropped an armful of snacks and sodas
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on the counter anyway. Back on the road, creeping closer
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to college, I heard her breath get slow and deep
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and opened the visor mirror to peek into the back seat.
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She was asleep, her head tipped onto the stack of
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bath towels I'd washed and folded the day before. I
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wanted them to at least start out smelling like home.
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In the front seat, we whispered about her, held hands
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over the cold coffee cups in the console. Orientation is tomorrow.
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She needs to be at the library by nine. Yes, dear,
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you have mentioned that a few times. I know it
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just helps me to talk through it. When we got
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off the expressway, I nudged her knee and teased her
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with the line I used to say to her when
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she was a kid. Put your shoes on, baby. We're
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at Grandma's house. She smiled at me with her eyes
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still shut. She hadn't decided on a major yet. hadn't
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even decided if she wanted to try out for the
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track team or just run for fun when she had
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the time. I wondered if it was as clear to
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her as it was to us that the world was
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her oyster, that all roads lay open before her, and
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that she could excel in and enjoy. so many things.
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I tried to remember what I had understood about my
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own life when I was in the same spot. I
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think I only saw a few feet in front of me,
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only to the end of the semester, the auditions for
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the spring show, the summer job back home, That short-sightedness
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had had me frequently turning too far in one direction,
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then over-correcting in the other. It had taken a while
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to land my feet on a path that felt right.
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How would it be for her? In the parking lot
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of her dorm, There were dozens of the same scene
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playing out with slightly different components. Here with siblings. Here
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with a grandparent or a family friend. There with fancier
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furniture or fewer boxes. We all trumped up the stairs
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or rode the elevators. carried in cartons, and attempted to
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help make up beds. Eventually, there was nothing left to do.
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Roommates had been met, bookshelves stocked, desks moved about for
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maximum space. As we walked back out to the station wagon,
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with her between us, our arms over each other's shoulders,
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I saw the beautiful commons, noticed the old brick buildings,
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the archways and worn iron benches, and remembered that this
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was exciting and about her. So when I caught her
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up for one last hug, there was a genuine smile
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on my face. I can't wait to see, I whispered
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in her ear, what you'll do next. Moving in. The
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station wagon was packed. And it had been unpacked and
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repacked twice already. We'd been putting things together all summer.
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A box of books here. A desk lamp. and shower
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00:18:55.009 --> 00:19:03.099
caddy there. And it hadn't seemed like much stuff when
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it came in a piece at a time. But as
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00:19:10.160 --> 00:19:15.799
we began to wedge things into the back of the wagon,
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00:19:18.680 --> 00:19:24.509
all of it seemed to have multiplied. while we weren't looking.
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00:19:27.470 --> 00:19:37.640
Sheets and comforter. Pillows and a new book bag. Laundry
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00:19:37.680 --> 00:19:46.869
baskets full of clean, folded clothes. A bundle of hangers.
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00:19:49.069 --> 00:19:57.839
Shower slippers. and toiletries, and her favorite snacks to see
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her through study sessions. We fussed over how to arrange
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00:20:06.940 --> 00:20:15.529
it all, doing our best to leave no hoodie or
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00:20:15.630 --> 00:20:24.779
extension cord behind. Though she was so much less worried
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about it all than we were. Which, we supposed, was
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exactly how it should be. She was looking ahead to
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a year of adventure, new friends, new experiences. We were
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holding on to the rhythms of the life we'd lived
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together since we brought her home from the hospital in
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00:21:06.519 --> 00:21:16.509
her car seat. It made making sure she had the
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shampoo she liked feel very important to us, less so
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to her. By mid-morning, only about an hour after we'd
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hoped to be on the road, we were finally pulling
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out of the driveway. She was in the middle of
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the back seat, buckled in between a fluffy new comforter
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and an awkward stack of running shoes, a hamper full
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of bath towels. and a small trash can currently holding
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a surge protector, her hairbrush, and four kinds of chargers.
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A neighbor who had babysat for her when she was
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little stopped by for a good luck hug. and handed
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over a tray of coffees from the cafe and a
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bag of rolls and muffins from the bakery. So we
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each had a warm cup in hand as we made
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our way through the streets of our neighborhood. I was
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thinking about her, riding her bike up and down these
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familiar blocks. Her in her Halloween costume, coming back to
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me on the sidewalk between each front porch. to tell
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me what treat she'd gotten. Her running over the curb
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at the corner while she was learning to drive. I
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turned my face to the window and tried to take
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a deep breath, reminding myself that She would be home
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for Thanksgiving, and never more than a few hours away.
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She reached her hand up from the back seat and
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squeezed my shoulder, and I leaned one damp cheek against it.
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she was good like that. Even so young still, she
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00:24:51.720 --> 00:24:59.829
could be with me, with us, with her friends, and
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the kids she coached in track, and just let us
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feel how we felt. not try to jostle us out
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of it before we were ready. Just stay a moment
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with us. I patted her hand with mine and sat
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up a bit taller in the passenger seat, rolled my
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shoulders back and sniffed Sure that those weren't the last
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tears of the day. Still, I felt a little lighter
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for shedding them. For remembering how proud I was of her.
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The leaves at the tops of the trees along the
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highway were turning. And when we stopped for gas, an
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hour out of town, and I stepped out of the
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car to stretch my legs, the breeze was cool and fresh.
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We wandered into the shop, and I laughed at myself,
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remembering the road trips when she was little, when we'd
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had to negotiate in these moments. One thing. She could
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get one thing. Not a drink and a candy bar.
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Not gum and chips. Just one. Now, I was offering
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her everything I saw. Was she hungry? Was she thirsty?
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I asked. Did she need one of these keychains with
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her initial on it? They have granola bars, I told her.
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I'm good, she said, again and again. Yes, you are,
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I affirmed, and dropped an armful of snacks. and sodas
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on the counter anyway. Back on the road, and creeping
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closer to college, I heard her breath get slow and deep,
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and I opened the visor mirror to peek into the
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back seat. She was asleep, Her head tipped onto the
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stack of bath towels I'd washed and folded the day before.
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I wanted them to at least start out smelling like home.
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In the front seat, we whispered about her and held hands,
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over the cold coffee cups in the console. Orientation is tomorrow.
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She needs to be at the library by nine. Yes,
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my dear. You have mentioned that a few times. I know.
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It just helps me to talk through it. When we
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got off the expressway, I nudged her knee and teased
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her with a line I used to say to her
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when she was a kid. Put your shoes on, baby.
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We are at Grandma's house. She smiled at me with
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her eyes still shut. She hadn't decided on a major yet.
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Hadn't even decided if she wanted to try out for
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the track team. or just run for fun when she
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had the time. I wondered if it was as clear
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to her as it was to us that the world
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was her oyster, that all roads lay open before her,
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and that she could excel in and enjoy so many things.
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I tried to remember what I had understood about my
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own life when I was in the same spot. I
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think I only saw a few feet in front of me.
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Only to the end of the semester, the auditions for
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the spring show, the summer job back home, the short-sightedness
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had had me frequently turning. too far in one direction
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than over-correcting in the other. It had taken a while
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to land my feet on a path that felt right.
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How would it be for her? In the parking lot
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of her dorm, There were dozens of the same scene
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playing out with slightly different components. Here with siblings. Here
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with a grandparent or a family friend. There with fancier
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furniture or fewer boxes. We all tromped up the stairs,
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erode the elevators, carried in cartons, and attempted to make
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up beds. Eventually, there was nothing left to do. Roommates
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had been met, Bookshelves stocked. Desks moved about for maximum space.
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As we walked back out to the station wagon, with
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her between us, our arms over each other's shoulders, I
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saw the beautiful commons, noticed the old brick buildings, the
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archways and worn iron benches, and remembered that this was
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exciting and about her. So when I caught her up
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for one last hug, there was a genuine smile on
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my face. I can't wait to see, I whispered in
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her ear, what you'll do next. Sweet dreams.