After walking around the lake I bought a broom. I needed a broom to replace the corn broom I’ve had for eight years, which was no longer effective and looking a bit shabby. Too much sweeping of the sand and salt mixture from my sidewalk wore it down, and since I couldn’t find corn brooms at a major retailer, I went to my local hardware store to fetch a replacement. Brave new world! — I even compromised my “corn-broom-only” position and got one which was a sort of artificial-tree-of-the-corn-broom-world variety.
Photo courtesy wayne’s eye view at Flickr.
As I walked home, broom under arm, admiring the frigid, blazing sunset, I was ambushed by a cliché. Rising from nowhere it came — “time to make a clean sweep of things…” Ouch. (Yes, I know it’s cliché, but did it ever occur to you that we keep hearing maxims like this because there’s a big grain of truth in them?)
I dare say the phrase arrived to haunt me in a timely way. I often fall into this sort of space between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. It’s a sort of “thin place” where I start out feeling unsettled and is quickly followed by an awareness of needing to set aside time to think and plan how I wish to have things different in the future.
Which leads me to my point. “Write in Front of Me” will be changing in 2014!
In reflecting on my “seeing what’s there — saying what’s needed” theme, I realize I’ve not been sharing many things that are in front of me I feel are important and interesting to share; not just about the Appalachian Trail and hiking and backpacking. Make no mistake: I will still be posting about these topics as ideas, news, and observations arise. But expect me to “wander afield” and expound on other topics of interests in hope of enriching you — my readers.
Meanwhile — at the end of 2013 — Happy New Year!
Write in Front of Me 
“Thin place” – yes.