When was the last time you sat on the front porch of your home, waving at your neighbors as they passed by, or inviting them up to chat and share a glass of lemonade?
I have always loved front porches, the big kind that holds several chairs. When I lived in St Clair, Michigan, I rarely sat on my private patio in the back. I preferred the front porch, where I often sat reading a book until it got dark. I was not in a neighborhood, but on a state highway, so I only had cars buzzing by.
My love of sitting on the front porch is something I developed as a toddler. Back then, my grandmother was my babysitter. I remember sitting on the porch at various times of the day, watching the birds in the yard, migrant workers across the street playing, and watching the sun set. Red sky at morning, sailors take warning. Red sky at night, sailor’s delight. Hmm, wonder where I learned that?
As a teenager, my best friend in high school lived in a large, older home with a large front porch. I loved that porch! We would sit on it talking with friends, shouting out to cute guys that drove by, and just enjoying life. The house I grew up in only had a small stoop. I envied April, living in a home with a large porch that looked out over the street.
I no longer have a front porch. I always intend to sit outside on my lawn chair, and those times when I make it out there, I enjoy sitting in the fresh air and reading a book. I don’t get out as often as I want; life gets in the way, even in retirement. I, like many others, spend a good deal of time on social media, sharing trivial quotes, travel, pictures, news articles, and day-to-day activities with distant friends and family. I participate in public forums, where political discussions can turn hostile. People have lost the etiquette exercised during face-to-face conversations. It is so much easier to be insulting and rude when done through an electronic device.
That image takes me back to another time, when life was more relaxed and friendly. Kids played outside; they rang their friends’ doorbells to see if they could come out, rather than having scheduled play dates arranged and monitored by their parents. There were neighborhood block parties, where everyone got together, brought a dish to pass, and adults enjoyed socializing while the kids played. You knew your neighbors, and your neighbors knew you, and everyone got along. In my opinion, it was a better time.
Anyone who has spent time with young children will agree. They are energetic, exhausting, non-stop movement, and most of all entertaining. They will fill your world with knowledge you didn’t know was out there and if nothing else will bring a smile to your face. In my case this week it was two of my grandchildren that filled the bill.
After they were dropped off Corbin immediately informed me that he brought Sissy with him so he would have someone to play with. I guess “play with” is objectionable as he seemed to spend an equal amount of time complaining about her, and i don’t think he ever played with her. Alexandria did tear apart the train track, steal the train signs, steel hot wheels cars, drink all of Corbin’s water, and more.
For the most part Corbin takes it all in stride. After all, he knows how she came to be in his life. You see Alexandria was growing in mommy’s tummy and a doctor had to cut her out because it wasn’t good. When mommy ate Sissy took all the food. Now I must say that is pretty good logic coming from the mind of a five year old. Besides, I’m sure there are a lot of pregnant women out there who feel like the baby is taking all their food when they eat.
As I mentioned, Alexandria tore apart the railroad track and Corbin wasn’t able to get it back together. That was never my area of expertise, my husband Ron always handled it, but since he passed in December it is one of those duties that now falls to me. I worked my way behind the table to the spot where three pieces of track were separated. As I was working I kept hearing a dinging noise, until Corbin said “you’re pushing on the RR Crossing sign.” I wondered where the sound was coming from!
And so our morning went, flying by quickly as it goes. I did take a look at Corbin’s hands and told him he needed to go wash them. Corbin’s response “No, maybe on Thursday.” When I told him they needed to be clean for school Corbin responded that he isn’t going to school, he has to stay with me for forty-five days. Yep, that was his plan and he never even told me. Isn’t it nice to know there is a plan in place should the need arrive?
--- LIFE IS A MELTING POT --- Grace Grogan...Writer, Photographer 