For the past two weeks, instead of going home to a nice cup of tea or curling up with a good book after all my work for the day is done, I have been scraping. And priming. And painting. Two weeks ago I entered the world of homeownership, with all of its excitements and its headaches.
As I tore off old wall paper (the previous tenants seemed to enjoy putting wallpaper over wallpaper and then several coats of paint on top of that), I kept thinking that I should be having more profound thoughts than “this is disgusting” and “wallpaper should be illegal.” Alas my brain was firmly in the moment, in what needed to be done now and what needed to be done right after that.
Sunday afternoon I finished my process. No more painting and no more scraping – now the moving fun begins. But before that begins I have a moment. A moment to take a deep breath and look around. I have a house with fresh coats of paint, with my personal touch on it. And I have this house because of friends. Friends who found the house for me, guided me through the process, came to fix my gutters and paint my walls. Friends who wished me well and offered me helpful suggestions and loving thoughts. Friends who I call brothers and sisters in Christ, friends who are all members of Covenant.
Here’s where the profound thought enters in. This house is like everything else in life, stressful at times and joyful at times, but made so much better by the presence of a faith community. My life is so enriched because of this faith community – not just because some of you can paint walls or bake delicious pies for the working crew – and now my home will forever serve as a reminder of that blessing.
Showing posts with label blessings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label blessings. Show all posts
Sunday, July 29, 2007
Friday, February 23, 2007
about town
Today is my day off - and for the first time in a while, I'm actually taking it off. I woke up deliciously late, enjoyed some snuggle time with my cats, ate breakfast/lunch and then went for a walk. I walked down Beverley, from my apartment to Newtown Baking and back. Along the way, I stopped in at Design at Nine, my fav shoe store, had a great chat about shoes and more with the owner, and then continued on my way. I stopped by the new Indian Grocery, had a lovely conversation with the woman there. We talked about Bollywood and family, cooking and foods. Apparently, she's going to be making take-away food on Saturdays - yum!
Even though the wind was blowing (and my ears were getting cold), I kept walking, stopping next at Local Color, the garden/art store. I picked up some flowers for one of our youth whose play I'm seeing tonight, mentioned I had a kid in a play to the woman... she looked at me and asked if the "kid" was mine. Ack! I love this darling but no way am I mother. Too young, people, too young! She wrapped up the flowers very prettily for me, though, so all is forgiven. I continued on my way with a bunch of tulips, one of heather, both wrapped in lovely brown paper and tied with a fun, organic curly string. I felt very European as I continued on my way to the bakery.
Didn't get anything at the bakery, just found out that the yummy chocolate croissants are available every morning (yay). On the way back from the bakery to my place, a car stopped, rolled down its windows, and a young man asked me, in a hurried tone, where a place to eat was. I noticed 3 other young people in the car, 2 women and another man. I asked what kind of food they were looking for. Response: "Food." I made my first suggestion of Pampered Palate; they took it and were off (I noticed the license plate was from New York - definite out-of-towners). It struck me as a I continued my walk back home how fortunate I am. I had a wonderful leisurely day (which I'm continuing even now at the infamous Coffee on the Corner). I had nice conversations with people - some I know, some I don't. I got to enjoy the beautiful blue sky, the crisp wind, the at-home feel I had as I walked down Beverley. I wasn't hurried, wasn't rushed, wasn't looking for "food," whatever was the quickest thing. I have time to enjoy, time to be. What a blessing.
Even though the wind was blowing (and my ears were getting cold), I kept walking, stopping next at Local Color, the garden/art store. I picked up some flowers for one of our youth whose play I'm seeing tonight, mentioned I had a kid in a play to the woman... she looked at me and asked if the "kid" was mine. Ack! I love this darling but no way am I mother. Too young, people, too young! She wrapped up the flowers very prettily for me, though, so all is forgiven. I continued on my way with a bunch of tulips, one of heather, both wrapped in lovely brown paper and tied with a fun, organic curly string. I felt very European as I continued on my way to the bakery.
Didn't get anything at the bakery, just found out that the yummy chocolate croissants are available every morning (yay). On the way back from the bakery to my place, a car stopped, rolled down its windows, and a young man asked me, in a hurried tone, where a place to eat was. I noticed 3 other young people in the car, 2 women and another man. I asked what kind of food they were looking for. Response: "Food." I made my first suggestion of Pampered Palate; they took it and were off (I noticed the license plate was from New York - definite out-of-towners). It struck me as a I continued my walk back home how fortunate I am. I had a wonderful leisurely day (which I'm continuing even now at the infamous Coffee on the Corner). I had nice conversations with people - some I know, some I don't. I got to enjoy the beautiful blue sky, the crisp wind, the at-home feel I had as I walked down Beverley. I wasn't hurried, wasn't rushed, wasn't looking for "food," whatever was the quickest thing. I have time to enjoy, time to be. What a blessing.
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