summer slow-dances out of sight
but the back to school swarm has been on for weeks already @ the local stores. i'll be taking one of the youngest sons to his new digs @ univerisity for his second year of engineering, in just one sleep. (when he was younger he would have asked if that includes naps) he's never lived away from one parent or the other before, so very excited. and he loves to learn, so the whole academic lifestyle fits him like a favorite old t-shirt. his elder sister's farewell gift is, in fact, a t-shirt, bearing a photo of a dirigible, and the caption "my other car is a blimp". he's been designing and building his own blimp all summer, and loves the shirt.
and life goes on.... the little renovated church house where he grew up has been sold, and the 'new' place has only 2 rooms left in need of renovation.... a winter project, i think. a young couple from BC has bought the church. i hope they have children and it's filled with giggles and cuddles and noisy play before long, and the old Manitoba Maples in the yard are climbed on again, and hammocks hung from them on sultry summer days. the neighbor tells me the new folks are asking a lot of questions about what's growing in the yard, so there's hope that they're gardeners, and will enjoy and appreciate the fruits of my labors.
so, when they do take possession, in early november, i'll have money for that harp of my own, and a good slr digital camera, and even a kayak. and i'll pay off the mortgage on the 'new' house, and even have something left to tuck into an RRSP... something that was an impossible luxury when i was a single mum. and i'll be completely debt free...
free in other ways as well... ways one doesn't expect to have mixed feelings about when the days are a blur of responsibilies and appointments and school trips and bills unpaid and meals to prepare and dishes/clothes/rooms that need cleaning. it's one of the reasons i had to sell the other house, this empty nest thing. it's so much worse, i think, when the nest really is empty... not even another parent bird to share it with. no one to transfer all that care onto.
i've even considered getting a dog (despite the obvious deterrent... i'm allergic to furry things).... but it seems just too selfish and hypocritical to get a pet to keep one company, then leave it alone all day while i go to work.