Most folks regard “the short rows” as a task nearing completion.
Now that Mom seems content and happy in her new home, we celebrate “the short rows” with exhausted enthusiasm.
The daunting three month preparation of seeking her new home,
planning her move (what to take, what not to take), and
organizing and working her massive yard sale,
now affords us a rest, momentarily—the sale of her home lies in wait.
After the last yard sale patron drove away, I walked through the house.
Only the dust bunnies remain, but they will be gone soon enough.
My footfalls echoed throughout the empty shell, making me feel like an intruder on foreign ground.
This afternoon, while mulling over all the hard work, and the seemingly endless packing and unpacking of boxes that overwhelmed me a few weeks ago, relief enveloped me when I remembered something Mom said a few days ago.
She said,
“I’m ready to go home.”
At that moment I realized she no longer acknowledged her and daddy’s home as her home. I said nothing, but allowed myself time to reflect on her words.
Today, while on my way to visit Mom, one of her canning jars from years ago, a reject from the yard sale, rolled around in my back seat.
I stopped and bought Mom a colorful spring bouquet and a roll of coordinating yellow ribbon.
When I walked into her house, she said,
“What are you doing with those flowers?”
To which I proudly proclaimed,
“I’m celebrating, and I thought they’d be pretty on your table.”
“Celebrating what?” she asked.
“Celebrating home,” I said, and then I filled the jar with water, arranged the flowers, attached the ribbon, and took a picture.
*****
Dear God:
Today I celebrate home.
Thank you for showing me that a home means more than possessions.
Yes, memories are made there, but without a family to make the memories, a house is just an empty shell, a void to be filled.
Thank you, dear God, for my family, and especially for my mother. May she be blessed with happiness and good health, and may she enjoy her new home as much as I enjoy going home to see her.
Without the gift of your grace, I know that I would not have the blessed life that I enjoy.
I am truly humble and grateful.
Thank you.
Amen
Dear God, I Am... 