It’s Christmastime, so we’re staying with my parents in Kansas City. What a treat. Kansas City might not be particularly glamorous, but I love coming back here. The Big Girl made a list of everything she wanted to do during our stay, to make sure we didn’t forget some important K.C. activity.
A few years ago, my mother and father moved into an apartment building. Coming from New York, I’m accustomed, of course, to people living in apartments. But in Kansas City, it stills feels wildly exotic and interesting.
During this visit, I’ve been struck by the light and view from my parents’ apartment. They don’t look out on anything particularly remarkable, although it’s nice to see trees and a garden and, funnily enough, my old school.
What’s really beautiful is the light. On Christmas Eve, my mother called us into their bedroom to see the sunrise. We could really see the light changing, the sun reflecting on the clouds before it rose above the horizon, and the city changing color. At the other side of the apartment, we can watch the sun set.
We don’t see anything like this from our apartment in New York, because the buildings are too close together.
My parents mentioned that seeing the sun rise and set was one of the things they like best about the apartment. And I was glad to hear that they really appreciated their view. I thought that they might have become accustomed to it, and not even registered it any more.
The things that happen all the time–the things that we count on experiencing again easily–are so easy to disregard. How many times have I said to myself, “It’s a gorgeous spring day, but I want to spend the whole day in the library, with barely a minute out of doors. I don’t need to try to enjoy this day, I’ll enjoy some other gorgeous day, when it’s more convenient.”
If I lived in this apartment all the time, would I become oblivious to the light and the view? And what am I not noticing, in my own life, that would seem beautiful or interesting if I were a visitor?
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Happy birthday, Adora! I hope you had a lovely day.
