Taking the Bethel Plunge

Around here that means buying a house. Bethel has a unique housing market. You can only find 7-8 listings at a time. There are no realtors, the houses tend be expensive (just like everything else in town) and you cannot count on being able to sell your house quickly. Buying a house here means you are planning on sticking around in a place where a lot of people don't. Bethel is a very transitory place. There is a lot of moving between the villages and Bethel and a lot of outsiders coming and only staying for a year or two. After we had been here for a few months one of Jamie's friends asked Terrence how long he had been in Bethel and after Terrence answered him he said, "you'll leave." It wasn't accusatory just a prediction with pretty good odds. The boy himself was from Chevak, a village on the coast. However, it is not good for a town to always be in such a state of flux. People get hired, have to learn about the culture, get trained, then they get some experience and then they move on and the cycle repeats. It has a real negative impact on services and the quality of them. Some people who come here don't like it and are literally counting the days until they get to leave. I am happy to say that we are not one of them. I truly like this town. While it has it's difficulties (like -30 days in April and hauled water and sewage)it also has many wonderful things about it. I have been so happy with how the boys have done here. Jamie's experience in school and with friends has been so great. We have great jobs and clients and the luxury of doing the kind of work we really want to do. We are really lucky to be here. So while taking the plunge is not something a lot of people do I am really glad we are doing it. We gain so much by living in this unique place. And I love our new house! It has beautiful views of the tundra. The open design and interior are very nice. It is a good size for us, big enough for everyone to come visit and stay awhile. Four years ago I would not have predicted that we would be doing this at this time and in this place. However, for our family I think it is the right decision. Both boys are flourishing here and we are learning so much.