It is amazing to me how time passes. One minute, it is early September and it still feels like summer and the next minute, it's mid-November with the holidays making their presence in stores and in TV commercials. Each year, October through December seem to flash before my eyes and so far, even though it's still just mid-November, this year is no different.
Of course, living in Minnesota we get the added bonus of abrupt season changes. It doesn't matter if we are going from winter to spring or summer to fall, the seasons here change at the drop of a hat. This year is no exception. Just two weeks ago it was in the 70s and we were enjoying time outside under the warm, mellow sunshine. Today, however, marks the third or fourth cloudy day with snow flurries dropping from the sky. It's a reminder of what's to come.
This cold, dreary weather means that warm coats are a necessity when leaving the house. A couple of weeks ago when I was at my dad's place, I walked into the front hall closet and started to look. My Mom had a slew of beautiful, warm, fashionable coats that I often admired. Knowing that the cooler and colder weather was on the horizon, I decided to put off the task no longer. I told my dad I wanted some of Mom's coats...but that I didn't want to take them home yet. His response was "well, what good are they going to do you then?" With that, I went back into the closet, took about four or five off the hangers and started to try them on. Stacey was there, too and began to look as well. I felt kind of guilty, but tried not to think too much about it. I ended up with leaving with four coats.
When I got home, I brought the coats into our bedroom and put them on the bed. I didn't want to just hang them up in the closet...I thought they deserved a bit more than that. So, they just sat on the bed for a while until finally I realized I had to move them. I showed them to Andy and tried each one on again. As I put on and off each coat, I got a nice whiff of my mom... along with being wrapped by something my Mom wore, I was also wrapped by the oh so familiar smell of her perfume. It was such a soothing moment for me and I felt happy to have brought them home.
Now each coat hangs in our closet and I've had the chance to wear a couple of them with the cold snap here. And each time I put one on, I smell and feel my Mom. It's kind of weird, but very comforting at the same time.
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