The Decade Challenge: January 2010

UNBECOMING

Hindsight 2020: injustice in HD

excavation, sans-anesthesia, inhumanity

Not pre-owned appendages that were never mine

but treasure formed deep, in caverns my own 

Stones once kept safe

drown me now to stay afloat



Matrimony monologue

Monotony

Move

Rewrite our stories 

Recast the leads

Say what you'd like

Rewrite History, too.

The South will rise again you say,

Judge Judy walked the moon? 

Untangle DNA

Remove as much of me

Twinkle, twinkle 

how you shine 

impressive star

in this hometown sky 

Wish you may, wish you  might

Wish on a falling star tonight: 

Let Truth crash in

Flaming meteorite

Touch your lips

unbecome those lies.

The LoveBird Inn and Dolphin Bay Restaurant

In January 2010, my BigKids were little, so full of hope and love. Perhaps a touch of whimsy, too. 

~*~

McIntosh Bookstore 

Bay Street, Beaufort 

January 2010

" Books, you are my home. " 

The Decade Challenge 2010 - 2020: Prologue

PROLOGUE

In an effort to keep the story rolling and as a writer's prompt, I am going to try and reflect on the past decade from 2010 forward on a month-by-month entry. 

The biggest event in our family in 2010 was the birth of Riley Wren.

At first we couldn't imagine what life was going to be like, adding a brand new baby girl.

Now, I know that we cannot imagine a day without her . 

It is one of my favorite sayings, that we should write our plans in pencil. 

I find the edits are absolutely worth the inconvenience of erasing.

JANUARY 2010

The Decade Challenge: 2009-2019: Epilogue

EPILOGUE

It is fair to say that the last year was the most eventful and challenging off-road adventure in the story that is my life's past decade.



A divorce is no small matter, not even when seas are calm and everything is civil.



I've gotten the same question a lot throughout the process: If things were so bad, why did you stay? And I usually give the same short and sweet answer: Things weren't always so bad.



When I had removed from our home for safety reasons, and it became clear that I was to be served with divorce rather than have the safety issue addressed, my son asked me: But what about all those trips we took, (what about all those pictures)?



I told him then, as I reaffirm now: They still belong to us. They always will. They really happened and we really were there together. We can cherish the good in those moments, and we should.



And this is very important (at least to me): The decision to keep them in tact should have never fallen on a fault line between safety and explosive anger. There is no hatred in that statement. In this past week, I have continued to hear "You're the one who left" as if I chose to empty our family albums on a whim instead of asking for our safe preservation. 



I will hold to the truth despite another's attempt to disparage my intent.



I gave a lot of myself to my family in its formative years - two decades all told.

I share memories now in sincerity and for posterity.



The love I've invested hasn't changed or gone away, despite the ever-changing  face of our dynamics.

Someday, hopefully, I'll see a healthy return..

...that they may know and hear it from me...



2010

The Decade Challenge: December 2009

One of the things about raising a house-full of youngins when you're young and broke is that it encourages creativity. We made our own 'photo studio' when we.. I mean whenever I... wanted updated photos. 

They, for the most part, were pretty good sports about it... and you can see for yourselves just how photogenic they are. ;) 

...for the most part. ;)

 One of my favorite traditions at Christmastime was to take the Downtown Tour and end at the Gingerbread Exhibit across the river at The Westin. There was usually ice skating at the civic center, trolley rides, the candy kitchen and riding the ferry over. This particular Christmas Eve, we made it a family affair and had dinner in the hotel's restaurant overlooking the river.

An All Gingerbread Savannah ~ scrumptious ~

This was also the year that we were just going to focus on our little family- new traditions, no travel (except for Christmas Eve to Savannah) We would make a party of the occasion, go bowling and enjoy each other. That lasted all of about 6 hours before we were headed down to Amelia again. 

I love the brothers pose in this one. 

The Hampton Inn @ the Marina was a home away from home many times. It has a unique charm not found in many other locations.

Tick, tick, tick, tick, tock.... 

Ah, Pompeo's ~ how I loved thee and miss thee so... 

I am still trying to recapture the zing in your salad dressing, and there's never a Cabonara or Marsala quite as good as yours. But the little individual ornaments hung from each chandelier, and Chef Mario's personal greeting- these are the things I miss the most. 

 The Brew Crew & Pete  circa 2009 

Though I see through a glass darkly...

" We don’t yet see things clearly. We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won’t be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us! " -1C1312MSG

Onward! Into the next decade we sail...

2009 EPILOGUE