That was what Rauf screamed into my ear as I carried him through the Immigration gate. 18 hours later, my ear was still ringing when we arrived at our new country of residence.

Six months prior, life felt settled. Joe was working in Singapore, Rauf was happy at school and I was thriving. For the first time in my career, I felt like I had found the missing puzzle piece—the one that makes sense of everything else.

Then Joe was offered a new opportunity. There was no way we could be a barrier for it, he deserved it. It promised significant growth for his career, but more importantly, it meant Rauf would finally have both his parents by his side. At six years old, he needed that. He struggled whenever Joe was away, and as a family, we had to consider the bigger picture. A jigsaw puzzle that I didn’t realise needed more attention.

Still, I hesitated. For the first time, I felt like I truly belonged. I wasn’t afraid of challenges anymore—I trusted myself to figure things out. Would stepping away now derail everything I had worked for? If I put a pause on everything now, how will this affect me in the future? I was in denial, I didn’t want to take the risk.

I didn’t know what to do, so I turned to mentors I trusted, and one piece of advice stayed with me – it was my former manager and she said ‘If you stay and chase your progression, there’s still no guarantee you’ll get the promotion you want. But if you move now and be with your family, there is one guarantee—you’ll thrive together, and I know you will take good care of your boys’

Then, it clicked. She was right.

From there, everything moved quickly. We gave notice, packed up our lives, and prepared Rauf for the change. He resisted at first, but eventually understood that having both parents with him was worth it. Soon enough, we said our goodbyes and boarded a flight to start over.

I was not nervous about the move. What unsettled me most was leaving my career on pause, uncertain of what I would return to. But being together as a family gave me some assurance.

In a way, this was an answer to a prayer, well, mostly Rauf’s prayer. In moments when work became overwhelming, I often wished for a short break wheras he wished my boss would fire me. I saw as a way that God was telling me ‘Here’s your pause—now be brave‘. What I didn’t expect was the break to be 3 years.

The puzzle I left behind felt incomplete, but moving opened the door to new pieces waiting to be placed. Our next chapter had begun, in our new home: The Netherlands.