My Happy Place

Castle by Milaney

In the past couple of weeks a handful of women began meeting... women I consider mentors and friends. Our purpose is to discuss the emotions we are experiencing in this time of COVID-19. Grief is what brings us together.

We began by introducing ourselves, answering the question: Who are you?

This simple question is difficult to answer.

Often in American culture we are asked at introduction: What do you do?

Which seems to mean: What do you do for money?

Very few people want to begin by hearing about volunteerism, missions, passions, triumphs, dreams and struggles. Perhaps as the conversation progresses we might get to some of that, but mostly we are seeking a simple box of containment: What do you do for money?

My heart wants to go deeper. Perhaps that is why the question is: Who are you?

My answer on that first day of our new group: Despite the fact that my book earned $6 in royalties this past year, I am a writer.

I am a writer.

I am an editor.

I am pretty good at real estate transaction coordination... the paperwork.

If the question is: What do you do? then my ranking is reversed because we are speaking about what we do to earn money.

I am a real estate transaction coordinator.

I am an editor.

I am a writer.

I am also a grandmother, a mother, a mother-in-law, a fifty-something caucasian woman with a partial college education, a friend, a companion, a roommate, a leader, a follower, a sister, a daughter, a niece, an aunt, a widow and oddly a wife... still wearing his ring.

The follow up question now seems to be: Where is your happy place?

In being a grandmother, in seeing my husband's legacy live, love, learn and grow. 

The castle has lots of rooms.

R

Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going. -- Jesus, in John 14:1-4 [more]