Threads to the Past by Marty LeMessurier

While with my “in-laws-to-be” over Thanksgiving, I was introduced to this amazing gift idea by my “mom-in-law-to-be”. It is a book entitled The Story of a Lifetime, and it seems to me every member of every family should have one.

The book is substantial in size, nice and heavy, and will eventually contain the life story of the recipient, after s/he fills in all of the (nearly) 400 pages of questions.

Questions like:
What was your first year of marriage like?
How did your mother and father meet?
What were your dreams and goals during your first years of independence?
What does your ethnic and cultural background mean to you?

While this gift can be given to anyone of any age, it seems especially suited to relatives who are older, wiser, and have much to tell. I love honoring our elders’ experiences and stories in this way.

The first question I was asked at 9AM this morning was by a guy named Tuck. Tuck sized me up and asked, “so, you afraid of heights”? I explained to him as confidently as I could while watching power saws, nails, and boards being tossed up to a second story roof, that I was actually more afraid of widths. As in, the higher up I am with the least amount of space for my feet is what really scares me. But heights…hmmm…I guess we’ll see how it goes…

I decided it was high time to do something good with myself, instead of look for and then try and land a paying gig, potentially without meaning. With the full and always incredible support of me man, I set off to help build a Habitat for Humanity house today. There is nothing like hammering nails at an angle and affixing OSB to a wooden frame at 30 feet up and on the edge of a roof to provide both perspective and balance, literally and figuritively. I now feel like a new woman.

And all the while, Wilco is inspiring me, even at 30 feet in the air and on shaky footing. But isn’t that always when one needs inspiration, and often when one finds it the most? I found myself humming “When You Wake Up, Feeling Old” whilst I attempted to get my balance, taking in the vistas of pine trees and spanish moss, with blue skies forever and this lowcountry’s mild autumn sun.

When You Wake Up, Feeling Old
When you wake up
Feelin old
At this piano filled with souls
Some strange purse
Stuffed nervous with gold
Can you be where you want to be?

Walk down any street
You can find
Look at any clock telling time
Sing some strange verse
From some strange song of vines
And you’ll be where you want to be

I know I can’t sing
Until she brings the song to life
And I blend with kings
Wouldn’t ever change a thing

Who knows anything
I don’t know
There are so many things
I must leave alone
Some strange person is calling you their home
Can you be where you want to be?

Can you be
Where you want to be?
Can you be
Where you want to be?
Can you be
Where you want to be?