The View from Here

Ever since I was a little girl, one of my very favorite things in the world was the view of the sky out of my bedroom window.  I would lay in bed, night or day, look out at that sky and dream and think and wish and hope.  To this day, I still do it.

I remember as a little girl, in my parents house, there was a Rose of Sharon tree outside my window.  The sun, in the summer, would be stained pink, and the smell of the blooms would drift in with breeze.  Lilacs are one of my favorite things.  My dad gave himself a hernia moving a lilac bush outside my window, so that I could smell them in the spring. 
One of the best feelings was laying in a freshly made bed (I was a slob as a kid, and my bed was very rarely made, let along fresh sheets!) and watching the clouds drift by in a blue, blue sky.  Or in the winter, laying warm and snug, seeing the snow swirl and whirl and listening to the wind howl and blow.

The other night, Sawyer got up late in the night.  She was wet, so I stripped her down, put her in new jammies.  She wanted to lay down in my bed, so we crept back in.  As I helped her in, I turned and looked out my bedroom window.  It was bright and clear.  The moon, even though it was a sliver, seemed brighter than normal, and the dark was strangely clear.  Everything was outlined in silver, and so very, very still.  It was very beautiful, and I scooped Sawyer up to look out with me.  My normally squirmy girl, lazy with sleep, snuggled into me, and laid her head on my shoulder.  After a minute, I looked at her, assuming she was asleep.  She wasn't.  Her bright eyes were looking out the window and she wrapped and wrapped my hair around her finger.  She was quiet and thoughtful.  She was loving it as much as me. 

This morning, I woke up, after my typical 4-5 hours of sleep, groggy and disoriented.  I heard birds singing, something I miss once the summer is over.  The sky was blue and the air was cold, cold, cold.  But I knew, in those first 3 seconds, that it was a beautiful day.  I lay for a few more minutes, enjoying the blue, instead of grey, enjoying the sun, instead of rain.  When I let the dog out, there was the sun, shining down through my big maple tree.  It turned the backyard golden.  I almost woke Geoff to get his camera, but I don't think anyone could have captured that.  It was just amazing.

I have positioned my kids' beds, so that they too, can see out their bedroom windows and see the sky.  I think it's important.  I hope they do too.

Rosie N. Grey
The N stands for "new view, every day".