1. Back on October 1, 2006, I started writing this blog, kellogg bloggin'. I've posted over 3900 entries to this blog in the last eleven years. Over the past several years, I found that the structure provided by Clare Law's now-shuttered blog Three Beautiful Things, has given me just the form I need to write every day and chronicle what is happening around me, sometimes in photographs, but always in words.
This blog began as a vehicle for me to write about my hometown Kellogg, Idaho, especially about memories I have of my life in Kellogg years ago. My blog has taken on different purposes since I started it, but I've always hoped that this blog would help me, along with anyone who read it, understand that I am who I am largely because of growing up in Kellogg, Idaho.
I have often wondered what it might mean to this blog if I were living in Kellogg, if it were a blog called kelloggbloggin' because I was in Kellogg nearly every day.
Soon I'll find out.
This morning I bought a plane ticket to fly back to Baltimore on Monday, August 27th. Upon arrival, I will be shoring up the writing of the wedding ceremony I will be officiating on Sept. 2 for Julie Fether and Curtis Rockwell in Huntingdon, PA.
Most of the time, though, in early September, the Deke and I will be packing up and closing out our life in Greenbelt, MD.
We are moving to Kellogg next month.
We are going to move into Mom's house, next door to Christy and Everett, and just blocks away from Carol and Paul.
It's hard for me to believe we are actually doing this. The Deke and I talked for years, when we lived in Eugene, about relocating to Kellogg (or Spokane) one day, but it seemed that we had shifted our lives in an entirely different direction when we moved to Maryland.
Well, we did shift our lives in an entirely different direction in 2014, but now we are shifting again.
I wrote in that initial blog post, back on October 1, 2006, that Kellogg is my Paris. By that, I meant that Kellogg is a microcosm of the larger world -- not quite as full and various as Paris is (!) -- but in its history as well as in the present, the world is here and I look forward to being back in this world.
I'll be close to my sisters and their husbands. I'll be close to friends I've known for my whole life. I'll get to reacquaint myself with the natural beauty of North Idaho. I'll be able to enjoy the beers of North Idaho, the Inland Northwest and the Pacific Northwest (but, I sure will miss the great beers of D. C., Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New York).
The Deke and I just can't seem to get enough of starting a new life somewhere else.
We used to think that by this time in our lives we'd be settling in.
But, no.
We are moving again, not only with a sense of adventure, but with a great sense of gratitude for Mom's generosity to her children, the generosity that makes this move possible.
2. This move helps explain why we have been clearing out Mom's house with a sense of urgency. I am trying to do all I can, with Christy, Everett, Carol, and Paul's help, to have Mom's house pretty much ready for the Deke and me to move into next month. Today Paul took down the last of the memorabilia Mom had covering the east wall of her kitchen. I took another load to the dump and tomorrow I'll take at least two pickup loads of things to donate to charities and return to the dump. There will be plenty left to do when the Deke and I arrive in Kellogg.
In many ways, we are seeing Mom's life of collecting and keeping things, as well as her love of kitchen supplies, gardening supplies, clothes, shoes, and knick knacks, pass before our eyes and we are reliving many memories that her things trigger. Carol and Paul's house is where we'll be keeping historical things: Mom's spoons, pictures, things that belonged to Uncle Bill, and other such things. When the Deke and I return, we'll deal with the top level of the house where more artifacts are stored and Mom's copious collection of Christmas lights and ornaments and other Christmas things she loved to put out in December.
3. The sorting, hauling, loading, remembering, and grieving wore me out today. I could hardly talk by late this afternoon and hungered for rest. I was very grateful that Ann Hill made us a delicious and fortifying dinner and delivered it to Christy and Everett's. She made us shredded beef to be served with Swiss cheese to make sandwiches along with a green salad, a fruit salad, and a huckleberry cake.
Earlier in the day, a Mary Rose plant, in honor of Mom's life, arrived in the mail at Christy and Everett's. It's a gift from Roger Pearson's family and the family of his sister, Trudi Brown. Christy and Carol opened it and we all eagerly anticipate its gorgeous blooms and love that we will have such a beautiful tribute to Mom in our midst. Roses have grown really well in Christy and Everett's backyard, so that's where the Mary Rose will be planted.
Our gratitude to friends and family grows in the aftermath of losing Mom. We have received many thoughtful cards, messages, dinners, and gifts. We are beginning to hear from people who plan to attend Mom's service on Oct. 6th and are very grateful as we anticipate all who will join us to celebrate Mom's life.
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