Let Winter Begin

I ended my last post with the words "let winter begin". Well...when will it?? It is January 5th-- my deceased father's birthday and parents' anniversary--and it is shirtsleeve weather! The early perennials are poking up out of the ground and the maple trees have those fuzzy red things that come before the formation of the helicopter seeds. I even saw a couple of flying insects out on the patio. It's not nice to fool Mother Nature! I'm not complaining, however. The way I look at it, there is plenty of winter left for nasty weather, but every day that passes without it means we are that much closer to springtime. Last year at this time, I just moped. By early February, I flew to California to visit my daughter and spent some time in their mild temps during the ugliest part of winter at home. We had 16.6 inches of snow in Indiana in December last year. This whole season, so far, maybe 2 inches? I'm loving it!

For a couple of years now, one of my dear friends has been asking me, "Are you ready to move back into your old bedroom now?" And for those years, I have resisted. Moving back into that room meant major furniture moving, etc., but I think I'm ready now. I sleep in my old bedroom. I just haven't moved in--largely, I think, because doing so would mean that the room was no longer my daughter's. (We decorated the room to her tastes, etc. I just didn't want to accept the reality that she is no longer living here.) Well, I think I'm ready now. I'm tired of my clothing being in several places. I'm prepared to reclaim some space. Thus, I've been working on clearing her things out of the room and making it more mine. 'Tis a big job which requires cleaning out the closet and trying to find other places for her things that are still here.

One of the reasons I feel that I'm ready is that I have a laptop computer in that room. (My main desktop computer is in the garage room, but having the laptop in the other bedroom is a big deal!) I've spent the past two days working on sorting through things, realizing that there is more to do. I haven't given myself a timeline. I just work at it as I can. I notice the difference!

No, I haven't left the house in days, and I haven't fixed myself up enough to be presentable...but I am working inside the residence and liking it. I have been gathering things to take up to my daughter on my next visit, things to donate to Goodwill, things to donate to The Salvation Army, and things to take to the recycling bin at church. Of course, the garbage cans will be full, too! I will always fall short of perfection, but at least I'm working on it!