From the Ground Up

I am Capricorn, I am of the Earth. The changes of the seasons take place in my blood. From my earliest memories, I have lain in wait as each brand-new season unfolded before me. I loved and longed for and anticipated each one in turn. The reason I ended up in construction work was because I just wanted to be outside. It drove me crazy the year we built the children’s gallery in the basement of the Wichita Art Museum – no windows anywhere and perfectly regulated temperature and humidity. Loved the job but couldn’t wait for it to be over. In recent years, however, I have watched the seasons change from inside my vehicle, marveling at the superb crimson of a late September maple or being awed by the pristine blush of an early April redbud – all through my windshield. I watched the neighbor dig her gardens row by row, watched the honeysuckle spill over her porch railing, I watched the snow pile up against the side of her garage like an old worn-out hound dog – all from my perch inside my machine, or from my own porch, or through the windows of my home as I sit in this cozy chair in my kitchen. I followed the moon as she parried and twisted in the sun’s glorious glow through those same windows or from that same porch. I barely knew the stars.

A lifetime of satisfying but hard and heavy work had ground the cartilage in my knees to mush. I could barely walk through the grocery store before my right knee, especially, would have me looking for the closest place to sit down. My last two jobs were the two stores Mary and I built out, they are a pure testament to the beauty of CBD. By the time they were completed, the knees were really shot, a walk of any length was out of the question. Yes, my bicycle allowed me to be outside; a little closer view; a little slower pace; a little more time to think. A little closer to the earth, yes, but still not touching it. Still on a machine. Walking the earth, which was part of the soul of my youth, I traded for the exigencies of work and family, because that was part of my soul, too.