By: Amanda Winter Moore
Hello all,
I kicked around several different ideas for this edition’s installment of “Amanda, Absolutely!” Given the current crisis that the world is facing, however, none of my ideas seemed appropriate. I thought about a poem that my 12-year-old daughter wrote recently for an assignment in her sixth-grade English class, and I was reminded that sometimes it takes a child’s perspective to help us remember the things that are most important in this life. To her, life is relatively simple. She has not lost sight of the things that speak to her heart.
The fast-paced life that most of society is living in today’s times makes it easy for each of us to become out of touch with those things that are most precious to us. All too often, the activities that fill up our daily lives cause us to lose focus of the little moments in life that make it worth living. The global COVID-19 pandemic has created feelings of uncertainty (to say the least) in most people that I know. While I do not enjoy the reason behind the need for social distancing, I am embracing this time as an opportunity to slow down my life’s pace and shift my focus back onto simpler, more essential things. Please enjoy reading “Home,” brought to you by one of my reasons for living. She is an inspiration to me. I hope that after reading her words, you will take some time to slow down and think about what “home” means to you.
Home
I am from vast pastures and flowing creeks
I am from coziness and never-ending comfort
I am from structure and routine and a bit of craziness and chaos too
From my mom’s little music box and a heart-shaped locket<
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From stuffed animals lasting since childhood
I am from loud siblings and an amazing Mimi
I am from two Christmases, two birthdays, and two Easters
I am from strawberry picking and blueberry plucking and the occasional corn-on-the-cob shucking
From hearing “go, go Power Rangers” and “rub some dirt on it” to “a family is a team” and “be a team player”
I am from “You Are My Sunshine”, “Cattle Call”, and “Old Faithful”
I am from pet names and playthings
I am from snow cream and strawberry pretzel salad
From Nana’s green beans and Momma’s poppy seed chicken casserole
I am from sunny days and starry nights
I am from grass stains and skinned knees
I am from reading outside and going to the barn
I am from home
I am from heart
I am from family
By: Amanda Winter More
