Tonight's picture was taken in September of 2006. That day we took Mattie for a walk along the Potomac River, near the Billy Goat trail. Mattie loved an adventure, to be out and among nature, and moving around. Mattie always had an inordinate amount of physical and mental energy and we learned early on that walks and outdoor time were a must! If you look closely at Mattie's t-shirt, you will see a blue train, naturally that was Thomas the Tank Engine. Mattie loved all things Thomas and therefore, I became very adept at trains. Playing with Mattie, educating Mattie, and being there for him was our number one priority. Fortunately it was because we did not get a second chance to get it right.
Quote of the day: Always show kindness and love to others. Your words might be filling the empty places in someone's heart. ~ Mandy Hale
Before we left for our trip to Europe, our faithful readers may recall that Peter flew up to Boston to clean out our Ford Explorer. The Explorer was involved in a minor fend bender, going at less than 10MPH. The scary part about all of this, is the car was deemed totaled. I am still trying to grasp my head around this. Any case, Peter went to Boston in July to clean out our family car. This car held many memories for us and Mattie had squirreled a lot of things in the car. Which is why it was important that one of us cleaned the car out personally.
For weeks now the items from Peter's Explorer have been sitting in bags in our living and dining rooms. Today, Peter is working on clearing them out and consolidating things. You wouldn't believe what is coming out of these bags. A collection of FLASHLIGHTS, of all sizes! I had no idea such a collection existed!!! Guess who liked to collect flashlights?! Yes that would have been Mattie!
The collections Mattie had in the car were noteworthy, not just flashlights, but rubber lizards, rocks of all shapes and sizes, pennies (Mattie always kept his eye out for pennies after being introduced to the concept of the "Penny Fairy" from my parents), sticks (in fact, there was one stick that was at least two feet long -- it now sits on Mattie's wrought iron remembrance stand in our living room), Mattie's sword from the Barnum and Bailey Circus (I guess Mattie never knew when a sword would be needed when driving!!!), and I am sure as Peter goes through more bags, more will be revealed.
The car also held memories of our time in Georgetown University Hospital. Within the bags we found parking stickers for the Hospital, a parking pass during the time Mattie was undergoing treatment, and of course when I think about the Explorer I remember entering the Hospital being a threesome and then on September 8, 2009, we returned to the car with only two of us driving home. It was a feeling I shall never ever forgot, nor will Peter. The Explorer saw so many transitions, adjustments, and tragedies in our life. Saying good-bye to it is like acknowledging another part of our life disappearing or having been taken away. I have learned THINGS, for the most part, are not important anymore in the grand scheme of life. Though some things I deem crucial. These are things that hold meaning, memories, and capture the essence of our time together as a family.... the Explorer was one of those things.
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