Ten Years Later

“It’s amazing what a man 

thought was important enough 

to keep ten years ago.”

Cody made this statement last Saturday as he threw a toolbox down in the yard in an effort to clean out his office. You would think – after moving from Kansas to Oklahoma to Michigan to Indiana – he would have sorted through the contents in his office over the last ten years, several times. 

I guess sometimes, amidst the spirit of a move, emotion allows us to easily overlook the tossing, and encourages us transport everything to the next “home”.

Beautiful Economy, Indiana is the last place the pieces of CS' life stopped, and we aligned our calendars to find a day that we were both actually home - on the same day - and decided to sort. 
Oh boy, did we sort.

Kansas City Chiefs art from the early 1990’s

A Viking helment

Puppy collars for dogs no longer around
Bovine lubricant by the gallon

File after file of things studied at Oklahoma State University

Angus Journals from 1999

A party cone hat - identical to the one below

First pay stubs

Registration papers from cows that first calved in 1994

Letters from gals I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting…

All things important enough to keep ten years ago.

The next day, during the Super Bowl I mentioned to Momma how we had spent our Saturday.

“Oh, was it tough?” she asked, thinking of all the memories being tossed.

By the way:

(I know with confidence (I texted her yesterday to confirm details) that Momma still has Laura’s baby teeth wrapped in tissue paper inside a ceramic jar , a splinter that was plucked from Luke’s little body after a furniture incident and my baby book. Granted, my book is still wrapped in plastic and hasn't been tainted with a dot of ink in thirty years, but she kept it, nonetheless. Tossing doesn't come easy for Momma.)

I responded:

“No, it was mostly Cody’s stuff so I had no problem tossing it,” said the helpful wife. “I did find a box of my birthday cards in the file cabinet I had forgotten about. I put them in plastic and moved them to the storage barn. I have no idea where they’ll go when we decide to clean out the storage barn….” 
My focus drifted to guacamole.

Some things are pertinent to have around in order to get through particular stages in our life. I'm certain Cody couldn't have made it though undergrad or graduate school without a viking hat. But just as time changes paths, it changes priorities,  too. 

Ten years later, I’m not just speaking of “stuff” that may be kept around.

What about the other things we had ten years ago that we’re still in possession of?

Ease.

Devotion.

Scars.

Ideas.

Goals.

Fear.

Resentment.

Love.

Beliefs.

Jealousy.

Faith.

Worry.

Excitement.

Bitterness.

Remorse.

Confidence.

Ten years ago, which of these things 

were you desperately keeping within you? 

Which ones are you still carrying, today? 

Why?

Some things are important enough to keep.

To store.

To preserve.
To still find among – or within – us ten years later, soliciting a memory.

And others are better left in the past. 
Or the burn barrel. 
Sort wisely. 

Anyone have a burning desire to learn more about Prairie Chicken Management in Oklahoma?