Friday, November 24, 2006

57 Main Street


We had a heck of a rainstorm here last week, and it knocked down the few leaves that were still clinging to the trees. Since daylight savings time ended, the days have become noticeably shorter, and the sun sets behind the hills in front of my house around 4 p.m. these days. After some unseasonably warm weather, it's obvious now that there will be a winter again this year. And there's something about the dying of the light and the dying of the year that makes us reflect.

It's been a heck of a semester for me, but the end is almost in sight. I got in way over my head registering for three classes, but it took me a few weeks to realize it. By the time I dropped one class, the other two classes were already suffering, and I never really quite caught up. I've started looking for a "real" job--either a full-time job, or a part-time job that pays more--but so far I've only had a couple of disappointments. I need to learn to relax and concentrate more on school, but the end of my financial reserves is in sight, and it's a race to see which will happen first--running out of cash or finishing the degree.

As the old year winds down, I am reminded that this too shall pass. The new year always comes, and it always brings fresh promises of better days. So in that spirit, I present to you Green Funeral Home, a Main Street fixture since 1935. No Main Street would be complete without a funeral home, and this one is a classic from the days when Danbury residents would likely as not walk to the funeral home to see their friends off one last time. Yes, it does have parking, but the cars are unobtrusively parked around back--this building hasn't turned its back on Main Street.

Maybe you are not at a point in your life where this has been forcefully brought to your attention yet, but believe me when I tell you that life really is short. If there's something you've been meaning to do "one of these days," do it. If there's something you have been meaning to tell a friend or loved one but have been putting it off, say it. We have five whole weeks, and an odd number of days, until the New Year. Don't put off until then what you can start today.