I’m reading on the back porch of the cottage
Umbrella up, sipping Diet Coke in the shade
Looking out at the life my parents built
My dad carrying logs to the workshop
To extend the fence
My mom trimming her tomato plants
It is a nice day
And for the first day since I arrived
It is a slow day too
I breathe
While they nap
I lie on the couch and meditate
Breathe in, breathe out, count to ten, repeat
Until that turns into a nap too
Later, we move around furniture
Up and down the stairs
Rearranging spaces to match a life rearranged
Change can be a good thing
If it’s for the better
My parents don’t ascribe to religion much anymore
Instead, they quote philosophers
And read passages by the Stoics each morning
This is a good thing
It’s a touch unreal
How good it is to be home
To eat bread my mom made fresh this morning
To be here to help my dad lift a picnic table
He built himself
So I remind myself
Again and again
That sometimes we can
Have what we want
With Love,
Natalie