One of my goals this summer has been to clean out the clutter in the upstairs walk-in closet behind the bathroom. A walk-in closet is just asking for trouble, because it holds way more than it should.Stored in this closet are Christmas decorations, old letters, lesson plans from 36 years of teaching, boxes and boxes (all of them empty), craft supplies, and things I've yet to discover.
Two days ago I realized summer is on its way out, and if I truly intended to clean that closet, I'd best get to it.
Trouble is, I keep coming across things I'd forgotten about. I'm doing well in parting with the teaching stuff. When I first retired, I filled four storage bins with mementoes from my career, because I was too close to them, emotionally, to part with them. No longer am I emotionally attached! Oh, I've saved the occasional note from a student or parent, and I can't bear to part with my tattered copies of To Kill a Mockingbird, The Grapes of Wrath, Crime and Punishment, Ellen Foster, because I loved teaching those novels. But I've dumped out pounds and pounds of papers, lesson plan books, attendance books, students' projects, and video tapes.
Then there are the photos from my childhood. Those I cannot part with, under any circumstances. Take the photo here, for instance. The three elegant ladies are, left to right, our neighbor Connie, me, and my sister Roberta. Apparently we'd been having a good time with "dress-ups," as we called it, that day, and someone snapped our picture. I think the photo must've been taken around 1950, because I look to be about five.
Connie looks her usual demure self, complete with hat, gloves, and purse; Roberta looks very stylish with her clutch purse and hat; and I look, well, I look just darned happy to have been included, because usually I was too young or too much of an irritation to be included in their games.
What scares me is those games of dress-ups seem, in my memory, to have taken place only a few years ago, not over 55 years ago. Yikes.
Loved the photo! I picked you out immediately. But it feels so good when you are done with the cleaning, like a load of your shoulders!
ReplyDeleteP.S. I meant "off" not "of"...oops! When your aunt is a teacher...
ReplyDeleteCheryl, you look so much like Aunt Jean in that picture!! I thought it was you!
ReplyDeleteThis is such a wonderful photo of a beautiful memory! I can definitely see why you would not want to part with it. I'd blow it up bigger and frame it. It is funny isn't it, how quickly the years have passed? I do very clearly remember my mother-in-law telling me that shortly before she passed away. She said her body may have aged but her mind and memories were still 25 years old. I'm finding everything she said true.
ReplyDeleteI was at Kay's leaving a comment, and decided to stop by. I can totally relate to your post...I have 2 walk-in closets ,and a spare room, and a 2 car garage[I have 1 car],and am a retired elementary teacher. And there you have it!!
ReplyDeleteI have a refrig magnet that says, 'We are all the same age inside.' I read the book, "My Stroke of Insight" about a brain scientist who had a stroke and lived to write about it. Why we remain[feel like] the same age in our head is explaned in a section. I will see if I can find it...because I find it so fascinating.[And do a post about it.] I enjoyed your post.
love the dress us. I have some photos of me and some girl friends that I took to my 50th high school reunion. It was fun to remember childhood days.
ReplyDeleteI found your blog while visiting Kay's! I love it and if you don't mind visit again.
ReplyDeleteI have always wanted to go to an Oprah taping and have not had any success! BTW...I live in Illinois!
So many Kudos to you, I'm a bit jealous but happy to read all about it!