It wasn't till I looked at this photo this morning that I giggled at what I'd accidentally constructed. These three girls sat on the radiator cover and oversaw all my hard work yesterday.
The Christmas Tree had never been dismantled. Since it had been mine, and it does look like there will be Christmases in New Orleans in the future-it's coming home with me. It now stands in the corner, with all the ornaments off and neatly packed, to make the return to New Orleans in the rental car on Monday.
The music cabinet is going to be coming back with me too.
Even though Mom and Dad have been in assisted living for almost three years now; Mom only agreed to put the house on the market this fall.
As you can imagine, it is a gargantuan task.
All of which, has fallen to my sister Kat and her husband Tom. Wouldn't it have been nice, if the decision had been made last fall when I was here for 4 months? No such luck. So, we all do what we can to help and just keep moving. Tom's been up and was here when the decision was made, so he and Kat worked hard in the basement and elsewhere. Jim has been back and forth, and has since moved to California with Joan and the four-legged children. I'm here now and will return at Christmas.
By then, there will have been the estate sale. We don't know what to expect, but Kat and Tom have it all under control.
It's been an interesting process. I can tell when I'm in denial. I have the blinders on so I can keep moving forward. I'm NOT journaling. I'm sorting. I'm boxing and wrapping. I'm stress eating. I'm falling asleep almost as soon as it gets dark.
We're finding family treasures tucked away in unexpected places. I'm finding things that were mine as a tiny girl that stir long forgotten memories. Why is it that they loom large in memory, but are so tiny today? The magic is in the midst of the remembering, I become tiny too.
It's sad.
It's difficult.
We keep moving so we can move on.
After the estate sale, it is hoped that the house will go on the market early 2016. All these steps at a time...little by little-we'll get there.
wow, it is a huge task you and Tom and Kate are doing ! we have been through it with our folks as well, not an easy task to negotiate that ! and yes, it also a very interesting process discovering things you have never seen and rediscovering things ! take care , love niels
Posted by: Niels | November 28, 2015 at 01:34 PM