Dream house. Colette had been collecting images in her mind for years of the house she dreamed she would have one day, a house she could unleash every image saved from her memory bank: A big kitchen with a door to the garden, a window sill large enough for potted herbs, an old lace curtain that would sweep the floor, a large gilded mirror that she would white wash so that only a hint of gild would peer through. Colette knew, yes she did, that one day the house would come to her, because wishes spurred with desire she believed came true.
That desire helped her to re focus when her little children ran around the house, a house she dare not, could not, even if she had, put pretty things out. Instead she would wipe her brow, knead the dough, pinch off a piece, roll it in cinnamon and sugar, and give it to the hungry little hands. As her children ran out the kitchen door, she imagined the lace curtain billowing after them, like their long lost wings.
She smiled as she put the loaves of bread in the oven, and headed outside to to take the laundry off the line. Her thoughts weaved in and out, between the pinafores, the socks, her bedsheets and her husband's Sunday shirt. Thoughts that found her wondering what to cook for dinner as she admired her handiwork on the bedsheets… they might not have enough for a bedroom set but at least their linens were the prettiest in the county… her thoughts carried her to the clouds– Rain? No need to water the garden this afternoon, she sighed, wondering whether or not that would give her time to chat a few minutes to her neighbor, her best friend who lived down the road. Louise, her youngest brought her back to task, when she felt her tugging at her apron, "Milk, pease, maman."
With the last diaper folded she grabbed the laundry basket, leaned it on her hip and with her free hand grabbed Louise her youngest who was sitting at her feet, patiently playing with the clothes pins to pass the time. She called out to the other children, "Who wants milk, with bread with jam?" As the children raced towards her she headed back to the house, putting the laundry basket on the kitchen counter, and Louise in her high chair with a bottle and a piece of hard bread.
She prepared lunch.
Colette wiped the crumbs from her children's mouths, kissed the tops of their heads, and told them to go outside and play before the rain comes down. They raced outside.
Louise was asleep in her high chair.
Colette sat down, poured herself a cup of coffee and looked at the peeling wall paper. How she wished it wasn't so. Starring at it she wondered what she could do to make it look better. With that thought not even having time to develop she put her coffee down and pushed the kitchen chair to the wall and started peeling it. She didn't know what she would do with the naked wall just yet, but she knew what she was going to do with the peeling old wallpaper.
And that idea made her dream house come a little closer to fruition. Something pretty out of a mess she beamed and tore away. It wasn't much, peeling wallpaper, but it was all she needed: The desire to inspire to something creatively pretty. Happy was what she felt as she rolled the strips of wall paper into beads. "Isn't it funny," she thought to herself, "That this old wallpaper, that has bothered me for years, could transform itself in front of my eyes over a cup of coffee and exhaustion."
She laughed, tore and rolled as her children ran into the house from the rain.
Dripping wet, with puddles gathering wherever they stood, they asked their mother what she was doing?
"Making paper beads! Go take your school scissors in your satchels, you can help me!" By they way they ran upstairs she knew her project would be completed before sunset.
Melody, the oldest girl in the family was the first one downstairs, she didn't bring her scissors instead she gave her Maman a crystal she had found from the Church's Rummage sale. She handed it to her mother, "For you."
Colette wiped her eyes with her apron, and laughed that laugh of happy tears.
To be continued… another day.
Wall paper beads, are made from paper that is cut in a triangle, then rolled with glue. They are strung one after another to make a curtain for the doorway to keep the nasty flies out of the house.
The first to guess the correct answer was: Jan from Gracie's Cottage.
The most creative answer goes to Franca Bollo who certainly will be fueled to leave even more hilarious comments!
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