Ending a Chapter in Our Lives

Today was kind of a bittersweet day for our family. As many of you know, my sweet mother in law, a.k.a. "Nanny", passed away last August, and we have finally today finalized the sale of her home and "closed" the door on her earthly home forever.  That little house that served her so well for many years will now become the happy home of a new family, and new memories will be made there for a whole new generation of people.

Today my hubby and his brother met there at the house one last time, to wrap things up and make sure nothing was left that belonged to the family.

Recently my brother in law supervised the complete renovation of this little house, starting with the kitchen, and then throughout the whole interior and exterior of the house...new paint, floors, fixtures...which definitely increased the value as well as the functionality of the house.

The "brothers" were reminiscing about all of the family dinners we enjoyed right there in that very spot.

I was thrilled to see that Nanny's rosebush was blooming beautifully in the back yard.

She really loved her flowers and watching the birds...

She was so proud when she bought this "squirrel proof" bird feeder so the squirrels wouldn't hog all the bird seed.

Amazingly her poinsettia bush was in full bloom!

This building behind her house (see below) was actually the home where my husband and his little brother grew up from the time they were born.  Their family lived in an apartment upstairs, and his mother had a beauty salon in the downstairs, where she beautified many women in the community for many years!!  Later on they moved out of the apartment to another little house in the neighborhood...all a part of the family "enclave", which at the time included my husband's grandparents, two of his Aunts and Uncles, cousins, and then of course my in-laws and their two sons.  They all lived within the same block, so everyone took good care of each other.  Now all of these houses belong to strangers. It is strange that what was once a complete family neighborhood no longer has any trace of that family living there.  (For more about my husband's grandparents' home, click HERE)

My in-laws had this sweet little house built for their retirement home on property connected to the rest of the family compound.   It was the only empty lot, and had such lovely big shady oak trees. My in-laws enjoyed this little house together until "Granddaddy" passed away in 1995.  Then Nanny lived here alone until she was 90.

At one time one of the big oaks in front of the house blew over in a storm and landed on the carport of the house. My mother in law was alone in the house, in her bedroom, and didn't even know what had happened until neighbors came banging on her door to check and see if she was alright. Thankfully she was fine, but she had to get a new roof.

Here are some old pictures of family fun at this house...This was the last Easter Nanny actually lived in her house, back in 2013, and we had an Easter egg hunt with her youngest grandchildren.   Nanny was almost 90 in this picture.  Not too long after this Nanny came to live with us and my brother in law and family...back and forth between our homes for several years until she went into a nursing home in 2017, where she eventually passed away at the age of 95 last year.   

Here she is with the grandkids...they were so happy to find the golden eggs...

I think this was a special Easter basket for Nanny.  This is a good picture of how her kitchen looked before the renovation.

And this is a real oldie but goodie, Christmas in the living room of this house, back in the early 1980's.  This is my family with Nanny and Granddaddy, (and their dog Ringo in the background).

Another happy picture with Granddaddy, Ringo and our youngest son Scott. (who is 42 now).

So today, after we had the closing on the house, hubby and I headed back to our home. On the way we passed by the cemetery where his parents are buried, and paid a visit to "thank them" for the gift of their love and care for their family for so many years.

We realized today that we will not really have any reason to come back this way again, unless specifically to visit their grave.  It is about a 1& 1/2 hour drive from our present home, and when (and if) we ever move, it will be even further...so we probably won't make this trip again anytime soon. (Hopefully not anytime too soon...our own personal burial plots are also here next to my husband's parents...so now that I think about it, I guess we WILL come back SOMEDAY, but hopefully not for that reason for a LONG time!)

So, yes, it was a bittersweet day.  The closing of a chapter in our lives that has been very wonderful...one which we hate to see come to an end...but we look forward to whatever the next chapter may bring our way.  Life goes on...new generations spring up and make new memories together.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

1.  "To everything there is a season,

A time for every purpose under heaven;

2. A time to be born,

and a time to die;

A time to plant,

and a time to pluck what is planted;

3.  A time to kill,

and time to heal;

A time to break down,

and a time to build up;

4.  A time to weep,

and a time to laugh;

A time to mourn,

and a time to dance;

5.  A time to cast away stones,

and a time to gather stones;

A time to embrace,

And a time to refrain from embracing;

6.  A time to gain,

And a time to lose;

A time to keep,

And a time to throw away;

7.  A time to tear,

and a time to sew;

A time to keep silence,

and a time to speak;

8.  A time to love,

 and a time to hate;

A time of war,

and a time of peace."

And now...on to the next chapter...whatever it may bring...we will trust the Lord!  Remember, "When God closes a door, He opens a window..."