Tuesday, June 3, 2008

Ecclesiastes 3:1

A quick note on all things new.

In the middle of May, Rachael and I moved from our cozy one-bedroom apartment into a two-bedroom, two bath unit. Same building. Same view. Lots more space.

When we made the trek to Seattle from the Florida Keys, we cut what we owned right down to the bone, again; if we couldn’t squeeze it into the eight by twelve trailer we bought, we couldn’t bring it.

That was fine for the one bedroom, but last week, after sorting everything, we discovered that we now had empty space – the entire living room. Yesterday, with our federal economic stimulus checks in hand, we headed for IKEA and spent almost all of it on put-it-together-yourself furniture. Putting it together kept us busy the rest of the day.

Finally, with it all in place, we took a moment to consider our handiwork. I know I have said it before, but it wasn't bad for a couple of aging gypsies.

And then Rachael said something that pounded home just how on the move the two of us have been over the years, singly and together; how much we have lived out of backpacks and suitcases, without many permanent possessions.

“You know,” she said. “That’s the first sofa I ever bought that no one else had ever sat on.”