Summer's unrelenting heat, twice the unexpected appearance of death, several weeks of destruction and construction in my home, a change in location, job and life for my daughter's family, and the nasty wound that seems to be taking forever to heal, have sucked up all the energy I might have used to write my blog. But thoughts are emerging in my head an I'm wanting once again to share with friends and readers.
A hot summer emerged from the Spring of my Mother's death. Neither was expected, although Mom's passing was both a relief and a release for me after her many years of illness. The 90 to 100 degree temperatures of June and July were startling in their unrelenting intensity and unusual for the normally cool summers of the Northwest. The high temps seemed to cast a festering inertia on me and everyone else. I could have spent weeks wallowing in discomfort, but it was not to be.
In an attempt to heal my heart and keep me busy following Mom's passing, my spouse proposed a huge project for me to oversee: the selection and installation of much needed new flooring in our home. June rapidly filled with workmen tearing out old carpet, the ongoing search for new flooring to complement our rather eclectic taste in stacks of books, knicknacks, and a multitude of art pieces from my former gallery. The search culminated with the final installation of our selected product: carbonized bamboo! Although it seemed like it took forever, and more to install, the results are beautiful, and the project itself was a balm to my grieving.
But through the clamor and chaos of the in-home construction came word of our daughter's new job that will take her entire family far away to Texas. We have been blessed to have them so nearby that we can reach them easily. Not so any more! And as I write this, they are heading out to their new life so far away. Do they know my heart is breaking?
