In The Dark.

Are you aware of that feeling of being so comfortable in a house that navigating the dark for midnight pees is no problem? You know where the edges of the furniture are, you know how many steps are on each leg of the staircase. The sensation of carpet turning into tile. The feeling of the cold, cold air outside of the covers. The well known turns, bumps and juts in the hallways. The ability to get a cup of water from the kitchen in the middle of the night and not disturb the peace of sleep. That inherent wisdom of how your home fits together. I remember being a teenager in my father's old farmhouse and with 16 years behind me I could navigate front door to bedroom without turning a single light on. This felt like knowledge to me. I felt as though I had a secret key to our home, that comes only with age and experience. I remember feeling so powerful navigating the dark.

And here I am at 3 Brighton Avenue in Eastport, I've lived here a bit over 3 years, and I feel some of that experience creeping into the inherent knowledge that lives in my brain. I anticipate the turn at the end of the bed at night, where to step to avoid the furniture in the hallway, though the glow of the IGA still helps me find water at night. And I imagine my little girl getting older and being able to creep around in her pj's for midnight thirst and bathroom visits. That with the way the sun rises in the kitchen and sets in the living room keep me aware that I have found my home once again.