Recliner Withdrawal

Until today I had a quite disreputable recliner. The fabric on the chair was a faded and stained. One of the arm covers was missing. The springs were sprung and if I sat in it too long, it gave me a back ache. In short it was not comfortable but it was where I started and ended most of my days. I loved to have my quiet time there each morning with my Bible and my cup of coffee. The close of each day often found me there again with a glass of diet coke, a book and a blanket to snuggle with. It was comforting.

I got rid of it because I got a new couch and blue chair looked even sadder sitting there next to it. I considered covering it but I knew it's time had come and gone a long time ago. I kept it because it reminded of the time after Katrina and of all the friends and strangers who helped me then by giving a place to stay and clothes to wear. Later they gave me household items to get me started when I got a place of my own again.

I have always been this way. As a child I held on to things long past their usefulness. I once had a red sweater that a friend gave me. We moved but it still reminded me of her and I wore it almost every day. When holes wore into it, I did my best to patch them and sew them up. The seam came unraveled and still I kept on wearing it. My mother threw it away probably a hundred times but I would find and rescue it. My mother finally won that battle but she did not cure me of holding on to things.

When the guys came yesterday, I asked them to throw the chair in the dumpster because I knew that if they didn't I would probably end up dragging it back inside at the end of the day. Even now I would probably go get it if I could and that is truly terrible. Lord only knows what kind of horrible germs that dumpster harbors! I know that soon I will find just the right recliner for me and my living room. In the meantime, I am learning to hold onto good memories while releasing the worn out reminders.

I really love my new furniture by the way.

RW