I am Rich!

The sidewalk in front of my house is under construction.  I am not sure exactly why, but it is.  A board gives us access to our front steps. 

The man in the unit below me smokes.  We aren’t just talking light, filtered cigarettes.  We are talking the unfiltered, very strong, very pungent, fumes can work through various walls and floors, kind of cigarettes that I am not even sure are cigarettes.  The smell doesn’t only invade my house but it has penetrated the house across the hall from me as well – a unit with which his shares no mutual wall or floor or anything!

My balcony is a mess.  No, mess is too small a word.  It is more like the landing zone for a category 2 hurricane.  Given my love of plants and nature, the state of my balcony is a bit shocking.  However, it is what it is.  I will eventually find the time to fix it. 

There are parts of my refrigerator that resemble a biology lab more than a food storage unit.  I open the door, note what is growing now, and shut the door.  At some point I will pull forth the trash can and just… dump!

There are loose tiles in the master bath, the toilet in the Diva’s bathroom is faulty, and the drains are clogged, part of the fun of having thick and long hair….

And I could go on.  I could sit here and nit pick my house  in so many ways before I moved onto the state of my office and then my discomfort with the way my life is evolving… and yet, I won’t because none of this stuff really  matters.  Okay, the discomfort with my life’s evolution is a bit more significant than the rest, but the others are just the little things.    They are the little things that stand out or cause issues, but I honestly don’t mind them that much.  Were my house was a form of significant stress earlier this year, that stress has dissipated.  Now it is my house; my home.  It is evolving as much as my life it at the moment.

It is a home for which I am grateful. 

It took me quite a while to come up with the list above as I honestly do love my home.  I love the location, the way the wood feels beneath my feet, the ledge that we decorate for holidays, and the closet at the end of the stairs that has no purpose at all.  I love that the design of the kitchen is such that food in cupboards just doesn’t work very well, so we shop in a more European way and things to eat are often visible.  I love the green chair that is all about my daughter and the couch that is just beyond comfy… and the sunlight that streams into the bathroom as I shower more than 6 months of the year. 

I love my home and the laughter and tears that echo through the walls.  I love that it is where my daughter plays and creates and snuggles and feels more safe and comfortable than anywhere else in the world. 

And it isn’t big.  It isn’t in a gated neighborhood.  It doesn’t have a yard or a basement or a mud room.  It isn’t in the best zip code or speak of great monetary wealth or status or prestige. 

From the outside, my home looks nondescript – perfectly camouflaging all the love and riches that lie within. 

For As people around me strive to be or to have what they don’t, I find myself curling up under hand seen quilts, sharing quiet reading time with my daughter and our furry friends, and feeling as if I am beyond wealthy.  I am content.  If anything, I feel like I  have a few too many thing; a bit too much stuff.  It is time to simplify life a little and to share my wealth with others. 

I not only sit at a table where rich people sit – I live a life that a rich person lives… and it has nothing to do with money or status.  It is all about… living life!

 

This post was inspired by The Ground We Kiss