It's a Good Tired

Rescued from my unposted pile...

November 28th, 2014

It's Friday, the day after Thanksgiving.  With a belly full of tryptophan laced turkey, a small glass of wine, wrapped in a sweater against the and a gloomy wet of the outside, it's amazing I'm upright.  I feel like a fur-less black bear, who should be curling up in her root framed den, with her cubs snoozing merrily beside her.
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Wednesday was a cleaning frenzy.  Charley took the girls out and about whilst I drudged away at the grime in our home.  By the end of the day, I'd hardly eaten anything and I felt floaty and numb as I laid down for a short rest.

Berzo washing chairs.

Thursday morning was another cleaning, rearranging fest, but much more merry.  Boots steamer mopped the entire lower floor, Berzo washed all our dining chairs down while I swept, tidied, readied, and moved furniture about. Charley was channeling his inner-black bear as he spent most of the day resting.  He was slightly hung-over from our Neighborhood Marshmallow Roasting event.  I was too, to a lesser degree, but high on hostess nerves, I toiled on.

Can I have s'more?

My family was first to arrive.  That hollow spot in my heart filled to bursting with our greetings and hugs.  My heart expanded, as it always does to make room—warmth spreading throughout my chest.  Then Karreman family arrived.  The house became warm with introductions and kids playing.  Then Oma and Opa arrived with the turkey, stuffing and chocolate creme pie.  The familiar scents intertwined as people gathered, laughed, retreated, and rejoined.


Food was served.

Pie was served—first to Boots the Eater of Pie, then to the rest of the company.  Coffee was pressed.  Coffee was poured.

The feast was complete.

Dad and Poncho, Reed, Erika, and their boys, Tiberius and Christian, were the first to depart.  Erika was determined to do Black Friday shopping on Thursday night.  I filled up on hugs but my leaky heart emptied, feeling more hollow than before they came.  Then Matt, Lori and their kids left.  Then not long after Oma and Opa returned to Clark's house at 3380.  The feast smells lingered as did the body heat of those just gone.  Their voices echoed in my head with fragments of conversation.  We waved goodbye.  My house emptied.  My eyes filled.

I cleared the tables and stripped their dresses and threw them in the wash.  I folded up the naked tables leaned them against the wall.  I put the girls in the tub.  I returned the Ikea chairs to our living room and the little kids table to the front room.  I rinsed the dishes and stacked the plates in the sink.  Swept up the crumbs and lost food.  It was 6 p.m.  Sigh.  Didn't people usually stay and  enjoy company until at least 8 p.m.?  I got the girls out of the tub and into jammies.  Boots asked in her sweetest voice if she may join us upstairs tonight.. ...being Thanksgiving and all…  I said sure. I donned my jammies, brewed some tea and we all went up together, to watch our new movie Divergent.  Charley and I would watch, the girls would watch Netflix shows on Boots' tablet.

It was lovely.  Snuggled on our sofa, watching a good movie, the girls snuggled watching their show.  I no longer felt empty.

The night was long and we all slept sound.

The day broke late, and we emerged bleary but happy.  We spent this wet day at an empty zoo, enjoying the time out of doors.  Perhaps the Black Friday deals were too sweet for people to pass up.  Or perhaps the cold rain is off-putting to other people.  Not for us, we have good rain gear and thoroughly enjoyed the day.

Now I am tired.

Now I am fuzzy and warm.

Thank you for this time.

It is a good time.