Porch Sitting

What is it about sitting on the porch? Just sitting there, watching the world go by? From my front porch, there's not much of the human world to see; Larry and I are usually the only two-legged creatures roaming around this hill, if you except the birds. There's a good plenty of feathered folk here, from the common robin to the colorful goldfinch and a mighty hawk that keeps regular patrol routes over our chicken yard.

Honestly, there's not a lot of excitement around here. Looking out from the porch we see pretty much the same thing every day: the dogs playing or sleeping, the cat prowling or sleeping, the vehicle parked in their usual places, the gardens and flowers and scattered tools that didn't get put away. There's plenty of trees to look at, and a nice patch of sky and we can usually hear a vehicle passing on the road--and if rain is coming we will often hear the highway, 4 miles or so away.

Still, the porch is where we like to be and we will be out there as late in the year as we can stand the cold, and as early in the morning as we can get up. We stop for coffee on the porch, eat lunch there, and often spend evenings in our rockers too, just looking out at the same ol' view we've looked at for the past many years. And the view does change, actually:

8 years ago, Hannah was only 8; now she's driving and a junior in high school, all of the vehicles in the photo are long gone, and the porch has been stained several times.

Haley was 10, I think; at this moment she is in basic training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, as she begins her career in the Army National Guard.

In 2003, an ice storm created havoc with our view and took down some favorite trees,

but later in 2003 the mess was cleaned up and grandchildren came to make spoon puppets. Now these young ones are all out in the world, getting on with college, careers and life. Jared works in Morgantown, Allison is a high school senior and on her way to UT-Chattanooga with a full scholarship for volleyball, Cassie is in Nashville pursuing her songwriting career, and Kate is a psychology major in college.

The porch is still here, and Larry and I still sit out in our rockers, talking and talking and wondering how we have so much to say to each other even though we're together 24 hours a day. We watch the birds, pet the dogs, stare at the cats, discuss the gardens, make plans for the day if it's morning, or review what we did if it's evening. We listen to the trucks and four-wheelers invisible from our view and wonder who is going where and why. We hear the crunch of the mailman's tires, the drumming of a woodpecker and occasionally the roar of passing military aircraft. We watch the moon come up, the stars appear, the frost melt or the snow fall.

It might not be the best view in the world or the most exciting place to be, but it's our place, and that makes all the difference to me.


Copyright Susanna Holstein. All rights reserved. No Republication or Redistribution Allowed without attribution to Susanna Holstein.