Full Circle!

Sometime on or about 1990:

I came home from work and Papa greeted me at the door.

“Loretta, we have to go to the store right now. Someone stole my ladder.”

He was adamant.

I told him that I had to change, and then we'd go.

I heard a soft knock at the door.

My next door neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Gilles, greeted me on the front porch.

They said that Papa had been watching until I left for work, when I was safely gone, he got out the huge 3 story ladder. He had it braced against the very top awnings of the house. Papa had his paint out and was ready to climb up there and paint the top awnings of the house.

At this time, Papa was over 90 years old. Have you seen this house?

Mr. and Mrs. Gilles (as Papa always called them, our next door neighbors) came over to see what he was doing. Mrs. Gilles distracted Papa as Mr. Gilles took the ladder.

They just wanted to let me know what had happened.

I told Papa that Mr. and Mrs. Gilles said that he had the ladder out on the front of the house. Papa denied it. He said that someone just stole the ladder --right out of the yard. He exclaimed that the world was going to pot.

I told him that we'd hire any work we needed done on the roof or the awnings of the house. He was furious with me.

The next day, I went to work.

When I came home, another soft knock at the door.

This knock usually meant my heart would sink to the floor.

Mr. and Mrs. Gilles were again on the front porch.

This time, Papa had climbed on a step ladder, and had duct taped THREE broom sticks together—then duct taped a broom at the end.

He had his paint bucket out and was carefully dipping the brush into the bucket then painting as far as he could reach.


September 6, 2010, Bear Lake:

I woke up after everyone else, and imagine my surprise when I walked outside and saw my niece, Papa's great grand daughter, on the stairs, on a ladder, with a paint brush duct taped to the end of her extension pole:

I added the last verse and chorus to one of my favorite songs, "Life is Wonderful."  I thought the music best, since our chatter was rather boring anyway, Joscie was subtly commenting that I had better not take a picture of her all grubby and such.  Of course I wasn't taking a picture....only video was apropos for this one!

The words to this song are apropos too:

It takes some silence to make sound
And it takes a lost before you found it
And it takes a road to go nowhere
It takes a toll to show you care
It takes a hole to make a mountain

Ah la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la life goes full circle
Ah la la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la life is meaningful
Ah la la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la life is meaningful
Ah la la la la la la life is full of
Ah la la la la la life is so full of love
Ah la la la la la life is wonderful
Ah la la la la la la life is meaningful
Ah la la la la la life is full of
Ah la la la la la life is so full of love