Trigger dates
Certain dates trigger certain memories. For everyone. OK, I’ll grant exception for the babe in arms, but the rest of us; universal. Today, I have a poignant one.
Let’s go back fifty years. TV in two colours. Telephones with dials and wires (yes, kiddies!). Families with more than two kids and a dog. In our case, we were in full expansion mode: three kids, two dogs and a new arrival on the doorstep. When the phone rang, and the news came in, I cried. No baby brother, this time around (or ever, but that’s another story). Given that we were close to Christmas, I was bundled off to a relative’s house with three boys. I got to catch hockey pucks in the laundry room, because I was available.
The new sister stayed for a while. Long enough to be a “real” person, with memories and trigger dates and she also got to catch hockey pucks. At least I let her pad up with pillows. And then she was gone.
If she was around, we’d be celebrating her fiftieth today. I’ll have to do it vicariously.
Time to scramble. There’s company coming. Hope they don’t notice that we live here, 110%. Come in, be comfortable. The TV has some new channels since your last visit. If your luggage is left standing for too long, it may disappear. Just like in an airport. Think of it as a protective measure. Actually, since most surfaces are already covered, and the storage points are full, any luggage is safe. Nobody with the energy to “make things neat”. All part of life when the days are short and the nights aren’t long enough.
