We moved. I didn't forget you-- okay, I kinda forgot you in comparison with all of my other obligations. I've taken to writing by hand, as often as possible, which makes it more work to find my blog-post pieces. I am digging through journals, now, finding paragraphs for a long essay about moving.
Found this. Thought you'd might like it. I'll keep looking for more.
Every day that passes brings a touch of nostalgia, not for this outgrown nest of a home, but for the ghosts of childhood past, for the images of childhoods fully lived, here. Already Brendan’s workbench sits abandoned, much of the time. When we bought it at a yard sale, how he loved it and how lucky we were, happy with our ten dollar investment, happy for a place to park his handsaw and his hand-crank drill. When we returned home, the workbench was wedged between the stove and the washing machine in the kitchen. I tacked a child’s apron to the front, to cover the storage area below and to provide pockets for cat treats.
When we move, he may find he’s outgrown the bench entirely. We will prop it up on blocks, to raise it to the right height, but I will miss its presence in the kitchen, where we kept one another company, each at our own work, him with his hammer and paint, me with the flour and the rolling pin.
A childhood passes. And one half of motherhood passes—not nearly all, and perhaps not nearly the hardest part.
1 comment:
I look now, and I said the same thing two months ago-- just moved, will get back to you, yeah.
We hosted 20 people for Easter, including my brother David and his wife as our super-guests. Most of the boxes are unpacked, or consolidated and stashed. Big writing deadline tomorrow. It's good to take part of both of these deadlines, these moments that demand me to pull stuff together, to move on.
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