Up Close & Personal

This is something that I very rarely do. But, this morning ( 1:27AM, Sunday, 12 Oct 08), I (for whatever unknown reasons) want to allow You a bit of an intimate peek into an element of Me ... that I normally keep very quiet about.

I am motivated (or inspired) to speak with you, as I am ... because I have no one else to share these reflections with. So, in departure from my customary lesson-leaning, insight-sharing reflections ... this is only about me ... and my life's circumstances. Let me begin with the thought that has occupied my mind for a few hours now. I have been thinking "I could easily become spoiled to these comforts and conveniences." What comforts and conveniences do I speak of? Well ... the lovely, hot shower that I just enjoyed, for one. Not bathing from a small bathroom basin ... with water heated in a pot, on a hot-plate ... but in a nice shower stall with hot running water that ACTUALLY comes straight from the spout ... is something that I could become habituated to. And (please do forgive the "indelicacy" of this revelation), enjoying the utility of a toilet that FLUSHES ... instead of clearing one out over the course of a day with pails of water poured slowly in until the slow draining of it accomplishes the desired clarity of water by late at night (all to be repeated as a "routine" through the next day) ... is something that I find decadently delightful. Then there is the luxury of a stove ... with MULTIPLE burners ... instead of the afore-mentioned hotplate (that is used for heating water as well as the cooking tasks.) And ... blessed happiness is having the use of a cloths washer AND dryer ... right at hand (I finished folding and stacking the last of the 20 loads of laundry that I had accumulated (over the course of over 2 years of no such convenience. [Hand-washing items on an "as needed" basis ... again, in the small basin ... is what I usually do.]), just this morning. Then, sleeping on a REAL bed ... WELL, just let me tell you that I have slept like the proverbial Baby, for the past 5 nights (and, on this ... my last night of house/pet sitting for two dear Friends ... I am looking at that very bed with a lovely longing for savouring the last of these nights [HUGE smile].)

I won't even mention the companionship of a darling dog (Henry) and cat (Billie) who have made my visit here even more a pleasure. Nor will I go into the marvelous ambiance of breakfast beside the swimming pool ... watching the butterflies and birds whilst not hearing the sounds of one of the county's busiest highway's traffic tat runs in front of the cozy cottage that I have known as "Home" for the past 20 years. Ahhh! Sweet bliss, this is. But alas, it ends tomorrow. And I will be back in the primitive, but adequate, place that is my personal place of respite and reflection. But ... Boy-Oh-Boy!! I could surely become spoiled to this style of living [grin.]

So, My Darling Friend, I retire with a smile of gratitude for this sweet interlude. I bid you "Good Night."