My parents have been here for the past few days, so the toilets flush better, the plants stand straighter, and the showers run more powerfully. Yes, they spend their time fixing things around the house, with nary a complaint. In fact they claim to love it. And I love them for it. I see their touches in every corner of the house, and now I even feel their handiwork through the air ducts and the water pressure and more.
(They were here to witness the latest chapter in the garbage disposal saga, which I will not inflict upon you here; ask me about it sometime when pints are involved.)
My mom also helped me hang all the artwork in the upper floor and may I say, the place looks amazing. We even found a special place for my bodhran, a very meaningful and beautiful gift from my team in Northern Ireland.
To show my appreciation I took them to the Atlanta Cyclorama, an old-fangled but impressive round oil painting of the Battle of Atlanta. Please stop groaning. They loved it -- truly they did. I'm sure that the cyclorama was something that all north Georgia students had to endure as a school field trip, but we found the medium fascinating and the history of this massive artwork (plus diorama) was compelling as well.
(This is actually the second cyclorama I've seen in my life -- I did have a chance to see the Battle of Waterloo one in 2001, but I have to confess it made less of an impression on me!)
I love going into Atlanta and marking sites off my to-see list. It's even more fun to do with great people like my folks. We then had a scrumptious lunch in a small Grant Park joint and met some family friends in Midtown for coffee. I usually return from Atlanta with more items to add to the list, and many topics to research on Wikipedia.
My parents leave in the morning and I am always sad to see them go. I am so, so lucky that they come to visit and are willing to invest so much time and effort in me and my place. We always have interesting conversations and a healthy (!) exchange of ideas and opinions. And yes, most of our conversations come back to the three little boys back in Peoria.
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