Friday, August 11, 2006

things that go crash in the night

Be careful what you ask for... I wanted rain, and it came in a deluge last night, complete with damaging winds, and at least one gust that got hold of our patio table umbrella and took the table with it for a brief ride. The good news is that the umbrella, a projectile under the wrong conditions, didn't damage my car. The bad news is that the umbrella is now broken and so is the table. It's rotten, of course, that we now have to try to replace the glass, and maybe even the table, and we have no funds for such a venture, but I have been struck by the sadness I feel around this loss. I have memories attached to this table, and though the memories haven't suffered any damage, this tangible link to them did, and so they feel a little bruised.

As I go through phases of my life and come to terms with parting with "things," I am aware that it isn't the material possession that matters, it is what a particular "thing" might represent that matters. They are visual reminders of and links to people, places and experiences that are part of shaping who I have become. And sometimes the object itself reflects some aspect of my own being that isn't easily described, or can't be expressed in any other way. Art often fits that category--it moves me or touches some part of my soul in a deep place that makes my heart sing.

The table will be replaced, and new memories will be made around a new table. I suppose this is just another bump in the cycle that is life—endings and beginnings, transformations and new horizons. But first, we have to clean up the mess…

2 comments:

Pam in Moncton said...

I can sympatize quite well with the idea of being attached to things due to the memories they seem to contain within them. Much of my furniture and dishes at the cottage and some things at home were in my home growing up and many go back to my great-grandparents. I think I would feel very lost without some of them if something happened to them.
Pam

Jayne said...

Ouch... so sorry for the loss of the table, even though the memories are intact. Reminds me of a Mary Engelbreit coffee mug I had... "When you pray for rain, be prepared to deal with a little mud." Hope the clean up was not horrible, and so happy that it was not the glass in your car. Hugs to you!

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