As many of you are aware, we’re embarking upon a remodel of the main level of our home. It’s kitchen, dining room, laundry and living room so we’re going to grill and be outside a lot this summer.
I’ve adjusted my expectations to a month beyond the date of completion on the plan.
I hope that’s enough.
As I pack and purge our belongings tucked away in our cabinets, memories flood my brain. As sentimental as it sounds, I’m moved to tears as I wrap glassware and dishes from my parents who are no longer with us.
I’m grateful one of our kids wants to keep some of the stemware, it feels as if she’s saving some memory along with helping us to reduce the amount of “stuff” we have. It feels challenging to let go of things my parents loved.
It’s irrelevant whether I love them or not, somehow their memory is tied to them.
When people pass, things become a representation of the people they were in our lives. In a strange sort of way, I unite with my mom when using her stuff. It reminds me of so many good things about her; memories I cherish flood in as I wrap each crystal goblet and sherbet glass.
Whether I ever use them or not, the physical object ties me to them. My dad’s newspaper clipping from his almost perfect bowling game, tucked in the case I made him in Junior High Industrial Arts…do they even call anything close to industrial arts any more? NO – just like home ec!
The nostalgia is real as are the memories.
I’m grateful for the tears I shed as I packed today, and for the memories I’ll pass on to my daughter.