Let the Sun Shine For You

 And just like that I had the house to myself in the middle of the afternoon on a weekday, albeit for just an hour. The last time this happened, the year was 2019 – before the pandemic, aka the good old days. As this realization hit me, a wave of excitement came with it. I quickly grabbed my Bluetooth speaker, allowed my Spotify playlist to envelop the empty house – no crabby voice asking me to turn it down!

Emboldened, I set out to the balcony, book in hand, to soak in some sun and good prose amid this rather unsettling peace.  Ah that’s quite a sunny afternoon, my brain notices. Just the right weather for that quilt to dry out in the sun after a round in the washer? I hurry back in and just as I am almost done wrestling in the impossible quilt into the washer, I remember the tablecloth could use a wash too and there’s just enough room left to squeeze it in. Well, that’s just practical, both of them need the same cycle. I run in to grab the tablecloth and somehow fifteen minutes later I am gazing satisfied at a table with neat linen and a freshly arranged basket of fruits. Well now, I really must get back to the sun and literature.

I reflexively grab my phone along to change the playlist and dagnabbit, it’s not already the fifth of the month! After paying the hair-raising premium online, why not one round of Wordle…..or 10? The sound of peaceful snoring has suddenly stopped and the fur child in residence has woken up for her afternoon snack. We greet each other afresh after the nap and head over to the kitchen. (Oddly, the task of feeding this ever hungry mouth doesn’t seem an annoyance.) After the snack has been dispensed, this time I’m actually out the door and in the balcony before Mother Cinderella’s time comes to an end. The front door opens and bangs shut as the human child is back and the next round of dispensing snacks is upon me.

Reluctantly, I pull away from the warmth of the sun. I still remember it when I am in the kitchen and as the washer beeps its “I’m done”. Nope, not today. I’m out back in the sun with my book, giving myself the same advice I would to any other woman I know: Let the sun shine for you!