Yesterday I was at my Uncle’s auction sale…a bittersweet day
for the family
as Things rich with memories find new families and homes.
Such is the way of our earthly possessions, right?
Uncle is excited to be living with his daughter in their home now,
but two rooms simply cannot house the things that filled a whole home before.
Now the dishes on which many meals were served and shared,
(so commonplace in the moment)
pass through the auctioneers hands then to the highest bidder,
so too tables and chairs, beds, appliances, etc, til all of it is claimed, collected and carted off,
as Dear Uncle who bid his wife final earthly farewell a few years ago
parts with another piece of life; their retirement home and the things they touched.
as Things rich with memories find new families and homes.
Such is the way of our earthly possessions, right?
Uncle is excited to be living with his daughter in their home now,
but two rooms simply cannot house the things that filled a whole home before.
Now the dishes on which many meals were served and shared,
(so commonplace in the moment)
pass through the auctioneers hands then to the highest bidder,
so too tables and chairs, beds, appliances, etc, til all of it is claimed, collected and carted off,
as Dear Uncle who bid his wife final earthly farewell a few years ago
parts with another piece of life; their retirement home and the things they touched.
No wonder, there were tears.
A sympathetic relative offered
comfort with these words.
“It’s good to try to remember these are only earthly things.
We are looking forward to something much better!”
“It’s good to try to remember these are only earthly things.
We are looking forward to something much better!”
Still, those heart
tugs are earthly and oh, so real!
Pictured Below...
my 'keepsakes' from Uncle Abner and Aunt Almeda
While in the thick of love’s hustle and bustle
While in the quick of its kick and cajole
Wise to be wary of mere moment’s muscle
Deftly undoing the strings round the soul
While in the middle of having and holding
Balancing Maybe/Baby with long to-do lists
Wise to be wary of Fingers unfolding
Farewells like flowers the Hour untwists
While in the throes of love’s wild woe and wonder
While in the training of dear girl and boy
Wise to be wary of what waits near-yonder
Past this succession of sorrow and joy
While we clasp hands that cannot weather dying
Basking in tasks while ‘unwrapping the gift’
Wise to be wary of whispers untying
Bonds that seem commonplace before death’s rift
While Time works subtle, inevitable changes
Carving its art with an ethereal knife
Wise to be wary of that which estranges
All but the echoes from rooms full of life
© Janet Martin
My keepsakes in their for-now spots
...for those who wondered what I would do with my 'treasures'.
a New writing chair...
(and move-around-the-house-to-wherever-we-need-it-chair)
While Victoria decides if she wants this dresser...it's mine😀
(in the laundry-room entrance)
...the auctioneer looked around for a one dollar bid on this plant-stand, so I did😀
this stand has so much potential; this is its first tilt-the-head-does-it-look-okay trial!
(if nothing else it will be something new for tots to undo😁)
Eccles.3:1-6
There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away...
Had to think of the passage above and the song below...
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away...
Had to think of the passage above and the song below...
