loss

On the weekend I went to Southern Alberta. New Brigden to be exact. There is a post office open 3 days a week and a water tower left over from when the steam engines came through. We were there for a family reunion but on arrival received bad news. John's Uncle Keith had passed away unexpectedly (on his farm nearby) and a cloud seemed to follow us around showering us with tears.

It truly shed light on how fragile our lives are and how quickly things can change. On our way home we stopped at Keith's farm and saw all his family, his children clutching tight the grandchildren who were so precious to him.

I felt envious of the depth of connection John's family has. I'm sure it didn't help much but I kept reminding him how fortunate he was to have such a tight knit to parents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. The roots of his family are in that strange, plain farmland. Shrinking under a sky so big.

We dropped off the boys with my mother and returned to our big empty house. I miss them now so much that I work full-time and this time away from them is hard for me. You would think I'd be happy for the break but my break comes all day when I pour my heart into work. That's about all I need.

To continue on the theme of loss our neighbours on the corner of the street, a small but friendly family with a dog, a cat, a teenager, a young daughter, an occasional drunk father and a couple of broken down vehicles pulled up in a UHaul and moved out in the rain.

Just like that. Gone.