The Last Summer

A few years ago, I bought a couple of scrawny dianthus flower plants and put them in the good soil right behind my house. The little guys grew big and strong and have bloomed brightly the last few summers. They are a wonderfully colorful and easy to care for perennial that I love.

Today as I was looking at their explosion of bright pink and red flowers, my thoughts drifted, as they have so much of late, to the fact that this will be my last summer at this house.

Not that I want it to be. Like many Americans, I find myself facing the loss of my home to foreclosure.

Needless to say, this is a tough time for me, and I am finding it difficult to keep a positive frame of mind. I love my home. Nine years ago, when I was looking for a house, I drove by this one every day for two weeks. I wrote down the name and phone number of the realtor from the sign on the lawn. When I finally called, I was told a sale was pending.

Well, the sale fell through I guess, because I kept driving by for a few more weeks and the realtor's sign was still there. I got in to see the house and fell in love with it. I submitted an offer through my cousin, who's a realtor, and the next thing I knew, I was a homeowner.

Wherever we live, it becomes a part of us, and we become a part of it. When we leave a home, we leave a part of our life behind.

I know that having to leave here will probably be the hardest thing I will ever have to do. I have a lot of memories here, and this house will always have my heart.

So many things happen in our lives that we don't want to happen. It makes us feel helpless and like we can't control anything. The only thing we can do is get through them and move on. That is our challenge when life deals us these blows.

I will miss the dianthus, and the day lilies I planted. I will miss my trees and shrubs and the birds and squirrels I have fed. I will miss everything about this house. But for now I will try to make the most of these days as much as I can and enjoy this place for as long as I continue to remain here.