Front Porch

I am sitting on the front porch. This morning my wife asked me to write another blog.  All day I have been thinking about what to write, and frankly, I was out of ideas.  This is not all that unusual for me as I typically write a blog when I become inspired by something, still she needed me to write one, so I decided to look for inspiration.  One of the things I do when I need inspiration is to take a few minutes to “get away from my normal routine.”Today’s choice of “getting away” was to go out and work on a large hole I have in our pool liner.  I took the time to gather up the materials I needed to finish fixing this hole when it began to rain.  Since I cannot fix this size of a hole in the rain, I chose to go sit on my front porch and listen to it fall.  This is also a place of inspiration for me, and it proved why rather quickly.

Photo Credit

This morning my wife asked me to write another blog.  All day I have been thinking about what to write, and frankly, I was out of ideas.  This is not all that unusual for me as I typically write a blog when I become inspired by something, still she needed me to write one, so I decided to look for inspiration.  One of the things I do when I need inspiration is to take a few minutes to “get away from my normal routine.”

Today’s choice of “getting away” was to go out and work on a large hole I have in our pool liner.  I took the time to gather up the materials I needed to finish fixing this hole when it began to rain.  Since I cannot fix this size of a hole in the rain, I chose to go sit on my front porch and listen to it fall.  This is also a place of inspiration for me, and it proved why rather quickly.

As I sat on my porch swing watching and listening to the rain fall and looking at the trees across the street and my neighbors house I was suddenly reminded of my childhood.  You see, the lady that lives in the house next to us is getting older.  Up until a year or so ago, she still lived by herself and mowed her own lawn.  This is really rather impressive since she is almost 90!  She is still in good health, but recently, she has gone to live with her daughter and son-in-law.  Not because she needs to, but more because they worry about her.  The interesting thing is that for a couple of nights a week, she is still in her home and, on the weekends, her daughter comes to mow the lawn for her and tend to her flowers in the yard.

As I sat looking around and observing, I noticed that in the past few weeks, they have put out her porch swing, which she had brought in last fall.  They have also put out a couple of outdoor chairs on the front porch.  Now, I realize this is not a time capsule . . . they are just chairs and a swing.  But, it took me back to a different place from my childhood.

I can remember, as  a child being at my grandma’s house.  They had similar chairs on their back porch.  They had a similar swing just off of their carport.  The biggest difference here is that my grandma’s were almost never empty.  They always had friends and neighbors sitting in those places at their house.  It seemed that every night, my grandparents would go to someone’s house or someone would come to theirs.  They were not invited.  They did not invite others.  But they were always there.  At very least a couple of times a week.

They would sit outside in the chairs and on the swing and talk.  They would share stories about my grandpa’s orchids he was growing, or the cabbage in the garden.  They would talk about politics and government.  They would talk about their kids and grandchildren.  It seemed that with these people there was nothing held back.  The whole time they were talking, they would sip the iced tea that my grandma made or maybe even lemonade.

As an adult, I have not done this for years!  I have never been to my neighbors front porch to talk.  It is probably because I do not want to “offend” her by coming over uninvited, but why is that?  She is a wonderful lady, and I know that she would not have a problem if I just stopped by to talk to her.

My neighbor, as I said, is almost 90 years old.   She has lived in the same house since she was a teenager.  Her father built that house.  She knows almost everything there is to know about our small town and is eager to share it with those who will listen.  She lost two husbands to war.  She has lived through Hitler, the Korean war, the Cuban Missile Crisis, Vietnam, Columbine High School Massacre, 9/11, The Gulf War, Swing Dancing, Disco, and Bell Bottoms.  The woman has seen many things!  She is not shy, and is willing to share her knowledge with those who are willing to listen.

My question for you, dear reader, is this, “Who is a time capsule in your life?”  Who do you know that has seen more things in their lifetime than you?  Are they willing to share?  Are you willing to ask?  Invite them over to your front porch, poor a pitcher of iced tea or lemonade and see where the conversation goes.  Be sure to have a full pitcher of that tea, because you don’t want to run out in the middle of a story.  Keep the glass full and make it a regular thing. Get a time capsule today here, and write out the stories of the mentor, family member, or friend you interview. Let them read their answers 10 or 20 years from now when the time capsule is opened again.

Leave the phone inside and the computer turned off.  You won’t need them for this time.  It is only a couple of hours a week and your text messages will be waiting when you go back inside.  I promise you that the interaction you have with this person will enrich your life in a way that no text message ever does.  These people are a wealth of knowledge and they will share what they know with you.  So, pull up a chair and strap in . . . It is going to be a fun ride.  And who knows?  You might just gain a perspective on life that you never had before.  You might just get a history lesson from someone who was actually there.  Sounds like a great way to bring history a little closer to the present to me.  Bring a pen and paper . . . You never know what you might learn and want to write down.

Who would you like to interview and learn more about their past? Tag them below in the comments.

Making Milestone Moments Count,

– Mark