Contrasts

I don't have a "theme" for this post other than that I've had some incredible lessons in contrast during the past week or so. Some contrasts are significant, others just interesting.


1. We had new carpeting laid. This new stuff is 37% sucrose! Less petroleum went into its production and it's supposed to be super easy to clean on top of that. It was a little (actually very little) sad to give up that old carpet with its stained reminders of every illness and accident that occurred on it over twenty years. Also it was nostalgic and a bit sad to find memorabilia from our children's school years while emptying closets: Papers from 7th grade, Halloween costumes made by my mom, Boy Scout uniforms, and a "I survived the Science Fair of 1993" sweat shirt being among those items. Not so sad that I actually threw out those items, of course.



2. The girl who thinks Mt. Prospect, Illinois, elevation about 25 feet, is a mountain went to Seattle where there are REAL mountains. The stiff neck I got from oggling the Cascades from my cramped airplane seat was well worth the pain. Then the next morning I pulled into the parking lot at the school where my presentation took place and saw Mt. Ranier off to the right. It's a little hard to see in this early morning photo, but that beautiful peak became clearer as the morning haze wore off. My contact at the school told me that all schools in this area southeast of Tacoma are situated so that they have views of Mt. Ranier. I can't imagine ever taking those views for granted!

3 .
While in Seattle I got to hang out with two of my favorite young men: son David who happened to be in Seattle on business and nephew Tom who lives there. Being with males, of course, I didn't visit boutiques in the elegant part of town, but did see the incredible miracle of salmon swimming upstream. Having recently marveled at the salmon's fortitude, it was a little disconcerting to eat one at Ivar's restaurant on the shore of Lake Union but the view of the Space Needle, skyline and kayaks made up for any squeamishness. Having left Chicago where it was 90º and humid, I also celebrated along with the Seattetonians their first 75º temperature in some 250 days.



4. Shortly after arriving home on Thursday, my brother and sister-in-law pulled into the driveway. Among our sightseeing ventures was a Wendella boat ride out into Lake Michigan. It may be super flat here, but nothing equals that Chicago shoreline view!

Returning from our lake cruise, we drove home via Lake Shore Drive with its spectacular lake views followed by the huge ethnic diversity of the northeast side. Passing by the street where the refugee family most recently sponsored by my church lives in their tiny apartment, I told my brother and sister-in-law how thrilled this Nepalese family is to be living free in our city. On Sunday, our church bulletin contained this link to a video of the refugee camp where they spent 17 years! What must it be like to see the extreme wealth of some people in this city when you have come from such a life?

5. We took my mom out for a couple of hours each day that my family was visiting. We went for drives and to various local restaurants. She was thrilled to be able to eat a Big Mac in the car at our village's first drive-in restaurant. A drive along Sheridan Rd. past the lake, beautiful mansions and Northwestern University was a big treat. My brother and I were nervous, however, at each entrance and exit to the car. It's hard to watch the lack of balance, difficulty with eating utensils, and general ravages of age. It's even harder to walk past the multitude of people at the nursing home who have even more disabilities than my mom.

But.....this week I have learned of the births of three new babies...two even on the same day!

So, while at this point in my life I'm almost daily being part of a lot of sadness at the nursing home, it is so wonderful to be reminded of the joys of new life.

Maybe without the contrast with old age, those new lives would not be as exciting.