BY GLORIA YODER
Should it be so complicated to decide who sleeps where? I'm not sure.
Well, my younger children don't like sleeping alone, but neither does it go the best to have too-crowded quarters.
Some time ago Austin moved downstairs into what used to be our "date room," where Daniel and I would have our weekly 30-minute dates. The children were young, and time together as a couple was limited in a very real way. These windows allowed us to catch up on how things were going and discuss questions I had about the children. I recall that last date with him — it was one of those times where we went over our 30 minutes. I sat at his feet to simply listen to his perspectives on life, his hopes, and his concerns.
The room was eventually turned into a Daniel memory corner. It was where I placed a basket with my favorite books on being a helpmeet, the wedding book where I had carefully recorded details of our wedding day, and even some roses he had given to me.
When Austin needed a room in the basement, reality spoke of moving on. I felt stumped. What would I do with everything in that little room? Then one day, Austin and I, with the help of my cousin, cut down an eight-foot section of a pine tree to be used in his room as an evergreen to set his array of songbirds on. (Fake ones, that is.)
I was impressed as I saw him thrive in working with nature. I told him he could have the two-tier shelf Daniel had made from a huge tree stump and slabs of wood — it would be perfect for a nature collection. The corner cabinet in his room was one Daniel had given me for my birthday. I decided it would be moved into my office. And yes, I would brush-paint it since it was an older piece that needed a face-lift.
With that I got sparked — why, the office was in need of painting. Why not tackle it? Then while we were at it, why not do the entrance along with it... it needed it, and those old shelves made of flakeboard were like over the hill. And so it went from one thing to the next.
Last week I had lots of fun painting away — especially when I thought about how much I had dreaded that painting, knowing it really needed to be done one day. This time, as I worked on the project, something was just a bit different. Instead of thinking about what I wanted to get done, I focused more on savoring the moments as they came, even when it was just walking from the garage to the house with another can of paint. I did not expect this little change — making the most of each step, even with things I didn't care to be doing.
And so we mixed up random paints until we had the colors we wanted, then watched the walls and ceiling transform into what had been only a picture in my mind. Not only that — when those old shelves were taken from the entrance, I realized there would really be space for cabinets from top to bottom along the south wall. Now if you know anything about me and cabinets and shelving, you know I was totally on a roll. Since I don't have any storage room in my house besides the can room, which gets to be a catch-all, I brainstormed about those top doors holding items that would otherwise go in a storage room that doesn't exist. Then a drawer for each person, one for tools, another for umbrellas and softball gloves — the list in my head went on.
When the three walls were painted a silvery neutral and the fourth one a deep rose, I stepped back, picturing those cabinets from top to bottom. The bundle of reject wood in the shop would really be so perfect for it. I stuck my finger in the deep rose paint, and on that south wall, next to the huge smile I had made with my roller, I jotted the words, "The best is yet to come." Though that song has been a standby around here, reminding us of eternity with Jesus, this time it simply meant the patched wall would soon be lined with cabinets!
As the paint dried I debated on what would be moved back into the office and entrance. One thing was sure — I would be choosy. An overfilled room is likely a cluttered one, at least around here.
When I was ready to fill my corner cabinet, I carefully selected some prize pieces: Daniel's lone Croc, which he wore that unforgettable morning (no one will ever know what happened to the other one); the hospital bag where the nurse had placed his cut-up pants and handed them over to me; and a motto with the words, "All things are possible if you believe." Daniel's rolltop desk, where I do my business and desk work and get in touch with you all, was placed back where it had been in the office. The extra space where a smaller desk once stood now remains empty, bringing a bit of extra breathing room.
And now Austin has his own little room with his treasures in the basement, and Hosanna, who is already 10 years old, loves her nook downstairs where she sleeps. Today we moved more items downstairs, including her butterfly wall décor and such, to make it feel more homey since she moved down there. Julia gets along well in her room with the canopy log bed.
A mattress in the main area of the basement is where the younger boys and I will sometimes crash out for the night if it gets too sticky upstairs with the humidity. As you can imagine, the size of it isn't quite the same as mine — but that's okay; we are making more memories this way.
Now for a yummy summertime dish, let's go with a tomato pie recipe from Daniel's brother Samuel's wife. Enjoy!
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