June 26, 2006

My State of the Union

As you know, I normally am not one who journals about much of the daily minutiae of my very ordinary life. I prefer for a �writing urge� to rise to the occasion and perhaps produce something worth reading. Many of you have graciously commented from time to time that something I wrote was a �good read�. That is very satisfying.

Today will be different. It is a progress report. I feel like I am living in craziness just now, and perhaps this will help me sort out the details.

Item 1: For those of you who read Pilgrim, my gardeners never did show up. I now have a new gardener. A young friend of mine started his own business, and yes, he does charge more per month than the previous workers who just seemed to disappear off the face of the earth.

Item 2: I am living in a home which, except for my bed and bath and kitchen, is totally bare. All furniture, wall d�cor, curtains, and nick-knacks have been removed. My housemate had primarily furnished my home for years, and I sit here and wonder where in the world all my furnishings gradually disappeared to. But it is just as well, because now in the last couple of days, Son-In-Law has brought in a large truckload of boxes, and in a little over a week, an even larger truckload of furniture will arrive. My home will be completely transformed from �English Country� to �Rocky Mountain� d�cor.

In the interim, while the rooms are empty, Lowe;s will be sending men in to put in new wood laminate flooring throughout, and to install new ceramic tile floors in the bathrooms.

I feel sort of like I am sitting in the middle of a busy intersection, typing away at my computer, or whatever it is that I am doing, while traffic, street cleaners, movers, repairmen, etc. busily swarm all around me tending to their business.

It is an education to realize how much you live by rote and habit over the years. I now have to actually think when I go looking for something. Either I do, or I walk into walls and forget where I was going.

There is a tremendous freedom in walking through a room with no furniture to obstruct your path. You do not have to dodge a thing. There is no clutter. No dust. Just floor.

I have been amazed to discover just how materialistic I am NOT. However, it is all sort of a cognitive dissidence. I am looking forward to my family moving in and refurbishing the home.

Item 3: Tonight I am going to dinner with a small group of women. We call ourselves �The Birthday Club�. For years, we have been celebrating each other�s birthdays with dinner and a gift. Sometimes we do it a little late, depending on circumstances. This time it is a month belated for my birthday.

Item 4: I am making good progress on the beginning preparations for the London/Israel trip in September. I have received my passport, started collecting miscellaneous items, which I may need to take, and our �group� has begun monthly meetings for orientation purposes.

Item 5: In the midst of all this, I will not only be acquiring new furniture, Daughter, Son In Law and grandson moving in (and for those who asked, I am delighted about this)�.but they also bring a new little Bijon doggie about a year and a half old.

So it is one doggie out, one doggie remaining, one new one in soon, and my son is getting a new puppy (8 weeks old) tonight. It won�t LIVE here, but I imagine it will be visiting quite a bit. And doxie dog number one who just moved out, has come home to �spend the night� a couple of times this week thus far.

So color me a little crazy, confused and walking into walls. But I know it will all get straightened out one of these days.

Here�s a closing thought for you. I heard it yesterday in church.

�If God were small enough for our minds,
He would not be big enough for our needs.�

So true.

Text � copyright 2003 - 2008 The Homespun Philosopher

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