Window Pt. 2

I anxiously turned the knob of the back door and stood inside. Light poured in from the opposite end of the hallway. It was in. The window had successfully been installed in less than two hours Gavin said. I walked closer and it grew larger until I stood at the entryway of the bathroom, gazing out through our new window. It was more than I imaged. This had been a dream of mine & there it was before my eyes. The original entryway to the home was officially reopened, displaying a beautiful view of the land around us.

I think about all of the families that have come before us, once looking upon the same countryside that still is here today. The sunshine still illuminates the crest of these hills and the creek still flows through the farmer’s field across the road. That same creek was where the original owner of this home sat with Indians, eating bear’s head stew and scouting out land to build on.

The acknowledgement of time passing is a humbling occasion. Some things remain constant, while so many others grow and change and eventually disappear, leaving an echo of their existence in the minds of others. The age of this home reminds me often that we’re merely a chapter in its story. So many have come before us, dreaming big dreams for this house and making their mark on it as well. All of the calloused hands that have laid these bricks one by one and chiseled the wooden beams and plastered these walls, they all have passed away, but their legacy remains. We acknowledge them with a sense of reverence for the stories that they share.

I made my way back outside to find Gavin trimming the chestnut trees. “So, what do ya think?” he asked, throwing a log into the wheelbarrow. He knew how much it meant to me. “You’ll see that window every morning when you wake up & every night before you go to bed.” he affirmed, “We didn’t have to put that in right now but I wanted it to be a reminder to you every day that we’re building something here. Whenever you get discouraged, I want you to look out at that window and see how far we’ve come.”

It does feel like a milestone, and it’s taken a lot to get here. The money that we used to purchase the window came from an envelope we’ve been putting cash in for a couple years. It was our honeymoon fund. Just about every penny we’ve made has gone into this along with all of the hours spent, but I say that with gratitude because I couldn’t ask for anything more.

We’re simply thankful to be a part of the history of this home. Maybe one day when we’ve passed on, future families can look back on what we’ve done and uncover our legacy as well.