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.
2 comments:
Life is short... True words. I've noticed I've been thinking that much more these last few years. Something else I'm aware of - as the kids are aging out of the nest, I don't have to be so much of a shining example anymore - not that I've spent a whole lot of time & effort at that, but I've tried to at least fake it, when necessary. No more - I'm off the hook!
I lived in Hardwick, Vermont for a while after college and in the dead of winter, the sun rose over the hills about 10:00AM and set about 3:30 PM. Sorry, but I found that to be damned depressing. Anyway, make the best of it. Winter does have its share of exhilarating moments, too.
We had the same storm you did down here and I think it stripped all the remaining leaves from my trees and dumped them into my gutters. That's tomorrow project.
I hope you had a good Thanksgiving.
Yep, same storm. I just couldn't recall if it had a name.
I've never not worked full-time in my entire adult life, and that's part of my discomfort. I'm trying to think of this period as my "sabbatical" and tell myself that I should enjoy it while it lasts, because before I know it I will be back to working full-time.
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