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Harula’s GLADvent Calendar

day-17-shelter

December 17
Shelter

Each evening I ached for the shelter of my tent, for the smallest sense that something was shielding me from the entire rest of the world. (Cheryl Strayed)

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Harula has picked another interesting word for today. Normally I would think my immediate connection would be with the stable in Bethlehem, but my first thought was my home. We own a tiny little cracker box starter home that we never really found we needed to move out of since we only had two kiddos.

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Wits End Cottage

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It’s certainly nothing fancy. Though it looks a wee bit nicer in Spring and Summer with flowers here and there, and General Mapleon all green and leafy. But it’s always been my SHELTER, my safe place to go when I felt like the world was beating up on me. A place where I was free to experience my emotions — good or bad. A place where family happened — good or bad! LOL

And there have been many times our house SHELTERED others temporarily for various things. We’ve kind of always had an open-door policy with family, friends, and neighbors. Such as when our neighbor Pam came in one night crying because her husband was at home, barricaded in the basement with a gun threatening to kill himself. Sometimes fools rush in where angels fear to tread, and Drollery hightailed it down the street to talk with him.

It all worked out ok, but that sense of having SHELTERED Pam from something terrible made an indelible impression on both Drollery and me. We realized the importance of having a home where folks could come when THEY felt like they were being beaten up on, too. And that’s how we always have thought about this little house.

A house is made of walls and beams; a home is built with love and dreams. (author unknown) 

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images

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Picture Source:
Stocking — Harula
Our house — personal
Shelters — Sue Bleiweiss