A Brief Moment
I hope all 3 of you reading will indulge me for a brief moment. Those of you that we call family already know most of this story.
We lived in a nice neighborhood the last 5 years or so. Or, so we thought. Ever have sand in your bathing suit after you get out of the ocean? Well, there were days in our neighborhood where we felt like that. Other days, it felt like bricks were strapped to our back, like the 4th of July night a kid in our neighborhood decided to throw an M-80 at our 3-year old daughter in our driveway (and missed, thank God).
We moved to a new house two months ago. Today, we finally finished a fence on a significant portion of the acreage (about 2 acres) for our dog and daughter to run around on. Couple that with me picking splinters out of my knees from refinishing the deck, and it’s been a full week.
Well, my wife and daughter took our dog out tonight for her first big free run. I came out for a few minutes, but a daunting pile of work pulled me back inside. While I was inside, our dog ran the entire length of the fence, marked her turf a bit, then rolled around on the ground. My daughter thought that was so funny, she joined her rolling around.
How did I know this if I was inside? My wife came inside to thank me for our beautiful new home. In her words, “I just stood in the middle of the yard, looked around, and was so thankful.” We shared a warm hug, and she shared the funny and heartwarming moments I missed.
Houses have always been sticks and paint to me. An investment. That probably goes back to being forced out of my childhood home when my parents got separated and my mother got separated from reality.
But I really thought that this house could be different, especially if my wife and daughter felt like it was a home.
Money can’t buy everything, and it won’t buy us a “home”. Money bought us a nice house, but my wife’s tireless efforts with my daughter while holding down two jobs are what make this our home.
So, that’s it. That’s my brief moment, and I appreciate you listening.
