Ruth (Melody’s Mama)
As most of you know, we are clearing out our home of 37 years to move to our lake house. Transitions aren’t always fun. Some friends who have not done this before ask if I am excited…Not yet. You have to get rid of things you love and try to move things you just don’t need. We had this fridge in our basement that we used for extra food for parties and family gatherings. We hadn't decided yet what we were going to do with it when I saw a notice on my Facebook feed, posted by a dear friend, that a refugee family she knew needed a fridge. Made sense to donate ours. Another person heard that it needed moving, so he rented a truck and equipment from Home Depot to move it. Things didn’t go super smooth. He had to go three places to get the right truck and dollie. Once he got it here, he had to remove the fridge doors and the room door to get it out. The screws were not being compliant either. Still he persisted and with help from a volunteer who came with him (also a refugee) they got it on the truck. Lesson #1 Don’t just think because you are doing something that’s righteous, it’s going to be easy.
The Boxes
As this refugee was helping him, he saw the moving boxes full of stuff in our garage (hard to miss) and asked if I was keeping the box full of pots and pans. I said, “Actually, I was going to donate them to a place next week..want them?” “Yes,” he said. I then asked if he needed anything else (obvious question). Before they left, I filled up several boxes for him of things we didn’t need..some things attached to memories (remember, I’m a sentimental artist) but things that now would have new memories, like the pressed glass goblets my mother loved. (She was beaming from heaven)…an extra toaster, an extra crockpot, an extra expresso pot, and a lot more “extra” stuff. He even took decorative items to enjoy in his space. Art matters. It was easy to let things go when I saw his joy. So what I have been seeing as a burden since we started this moving process, he saw as a blessing. Lesson #2: Don’t try to outguess God.
The Rainbow
Before they came, I cleaned the refrigerator thoroughly. In doing so I remembered that my friend, mentioned above had done the same for me when we acquired my mother-in-law’s extra refrigerator for our lake house 30 years ago. Labor of love made a full circle. One thing I didn’t remove was a bright red sticker with a Maya Angelou quote, that had been on the front for ages. I’m not sure who might have placed it there, but I finally got the message, “Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud.” I hear you, Maya… and Mama.