Hot Topic

Ok, it’s crazy hot here. Mid-90’s and it’s just the end of May. After three fabulously restful, cool days in the mountains we are back home to the heat. And the watering. Because no matter if you have a lawn irrigation system, when it’s this hot all the flowers need a little extra TLC. Not to mention those darn flower boxes that have to be watered from the inside. Once again…note to Mr. Home Designer: what were you thinking?!

Is it just me, the heat, or does this age for a woman bring out a lower level of tolerance for some things? As I’m hanging out the window I find myself with an irrational irritation for the person who designed these difficult-to-use flower boxes. I mean really it’s such a small thing in the scheme of my life, but they cause large aggravation. I find that about many things these days. What I tell myself is that I have reached an age of greater wisdom and so have a better understanding of how things should work in this world. Yet, as I say that I realize how ridiculous that sounds when in fact the older we get the more we know what we don’t know. We will never understand it all, not until we meet our maker. But, boy, do I have a list of questions for him!

Yesterday was my monthly book club meeting. I’ve lost track, but I think I’ve been with this group for close to 15 years. Our name is the “Out of the Water” Book Club because it started as an idea in a water aerobics class. Most of our original members came from that class. We’ve changed some over the years, bringing in new members from other avenues of our lives. We are a nice assortment of ages which adds such dimension (i.e. wisdom) to our discussions. Sadly, we have even lost a few members to illness and age, but there is a core group of us who have been there from the beginning. There is something so satisfying about participating in a group of women for so long.

Although, something to ponder……why do we form book clubs along gender lines? That’s literally the first time that thought has occurred to me. (Did you catch my literal reference, wink wink?) Some of our discussions would be vastly different with a male outlook. But then again, there is a freedom of discussion among women. We go places a man might be very uncomfortable!

Anyway, I have always loved that our group reads an assortment of material. We have a very structured process for choosing books every year, but typically try to include a biography, something about another country or culture, a classic, and a local North Carolina author. We don’t read a lot of fluff, saving that for our summer off-time. And we are not afraid of tough topics. This month we read Waking Up White: And Finding Myself In The Story of Race by Debby Irving. This very thought-provoking book about how we look at race in this country certainly added a few questions to my list for my maker. It is clear that we absolutely don’t have all the answers to this troubling struggle.

Sometimes it is painful to realize how much I still need to grow, how much I still don’t know. Maybe that is actually one of the best things about entering my 60’s. If I’ve acquired any wisdom it’s the kind that tells me I need to keep learning, to ponder the hard stuff, to get out of my comfort zone. No coasting into my senior years. I may never know it all, but I can certainly keep reaching for the answers. Though I know I would probably have a lot more patience for the thorny subjects if it wasn’t so darn hot!