A Homesick Kind of Day

Today was a homesick kind of day.  Not necessarily for a place, but for people.  I saw a video posted on Facebook of a Garth Brooks concert and I was immediately transported back to my Grandma Atchley's living room.  I can see it so clearly, sitting on the floor surrounded by aunts, uncles, cousins, and other family members while we all listened intently to Jim and Val singing "The Dance" and "The River."  My heart squeezed at the memory.  Listening to them sing was truly magical.  Those Family Christmases are some of my favorite memories.

Then Brinnley came home from school and told us that she is learning to play the bells in music class.  Again, I flashed back to my childhood.  The first thing that came to my mind when she said that was "Claymation Christmas" and the bells playing "Carol of the Bells."  I had to find it on YouTube and show it to Brinnley.  Then we watched all the other clips from the tv special.  There were the dancing walruses that always knocked over the penguins; the camels singing "We Three Kings"; the California Raisins singing "Rudolph"; the awesome dinosaurs acting as hosts.  I love that show!  Twenty-three minutes of pure awesome!

And for some reason my mind wandered to my wonderful Aunt LaVone.  She almost always gave me a VHS full of cartoons for any holiday.  Care Bears, Christmas shows, Winnie the Pooh, anything else awesome.  Most of the movies I had growing up came for her.  It was the ultimate collection of VHS mix tapes.  I missed her so much today it hurt!  I'm so sad my kids never got to know her, with her clip-on earrings and a pair of socks to match every shirt she owned.  

I know I must be homesick because I am sitting here typing this in front of my roaring fire and feeling a little upset because my parents had to replace their fireplace this year.  I'm not sure why that matters to me so much, but I've been upset about it since my mom told me.  It's still sitting there, but no longer usable.  It makes me sad to think of that old black stove never roaring with a fire again.  Thinking of that stove makes me think of my Dad wearing his standard uniform of his work shirts, hat, work jeans, and steel-toed boots stoking the fire and turning the knobs on the front to let in air.  It reminds me of days where it was so hot from the fire we had to open the windows to breath.  It reminds me of tight spaces when we first moved to our house and in years since Mom and Dad remodeled, of sitting next to the fire at our own Family Christmases and watching the kids run around the house, people roaming from the kitchen to the living room, laughter and stories being shared.

Here I am, upset about a stove.  Like I said, it's a homesick kind of day.