Today: May I cut in?

[tweetmeme source=”elizabethev” only_single=false]After a semi-soul searching run on Saturday morning, I dug through my drawers for my crappiest outfit.  I showered, threw on a hoodie and hit the Mass Pike. Somewhere around Framingham, I hit the most wild thunderstorms I’ve seen in a while. I drove 20 miles an hour, with white knuckles, unsure of what would happen when I got to where I was going.

After two u-turns and a few accidental drive-bys, I arrived at my destination: an unfinished house in one of Worcester’s toughest neighborhoods.  After a quick lesson on “cutting in,” I dragged a ladder to a corner of the dining room, and got to work. From my perch atop the ladder, next to a big window overlooking the porch, I witnessed a game of neighborhood tag, scooter races, and an especially aggressive round of cops and “bad guys.”

After I finished one section of the dining room, I’d climb down, drag my ladder over a few feet and get back to work. Everything that had been stressing me out earlier in the day, and in the preceding week, seemed to melt away in that small bucket of beige, eggshell paint. As I dug into the crevices of the textured wall, the site manager Chris’ words echoed in my mind.

“No place is too small, too dark, too dirty. No place is unworthy of your attention. This is where a child will live.”

As we finished up and I headed for my car, the sun came out.  There’s no place like home.

Also On Tap for Today:

• Happy Mothers’ Day!  I love you, Mom!
• I am officially obsessed with this song
• Lilacs from my parents’ house 🙂