Quiet

The kids gleefully headed back to school on Tuesday. KK dressed in her first grade uniform, pigtails in her hair and a giant backpack to hold the assignment book that was new this year. And Hew, with his curls askew, said "See ya'!" as he spotted his friends and galloped over to his preschool class. For the last few weeks, I had been anticipating the silence that comes when everyone leaves. I love being with my kids, but in summer as the stay-at-home parent, the job is 24/7 entertainment. Towards the end of the vacation, I am craving just two minutes of silence. In desperation, I have locked myself in the bathroom for quiet only to hear the the voices, games, music, or television. Tuesday arrived but silence did not.

PH, in a totally un-PH move, scheduled the roofers to begin on Monday. I understood that our roof was 25 years old and had leaks and we are in the middle of hurricane season, but damn it, Tuesday was to be my day of silence. Instead, there were various men stomping overhead, shingles flying off the roof into a clanging metal container, and the unending sound of the nail gun for nine hours a day. Not exactly silent.

So today, I finally have my day of silence. The house needs a good cleaning and I promised myself I would go to the gym daily, even though after two days I can barely walk without some part groaning in protest. But for a few hours this morning, I can have total silence. A cup of coffee, the paper, some Internet meandering. In a few days, I have to get back on a schedule as I begin a couple classes, but for now it's quiet and I'm happy.