Reminders of your past

Once in awhile you're reminded of your past and it feels so foreign to you, like another life.

It happened to me tonight. Got home, went and used the guest bathroom and while washing my hands, I looked up and noticed the painting in there, that I had painted years ago. The setting and inspiration for the painting was my backyard. Years ago U. and I rented a beautiful 4 bedroom home (one bedroom we used as an entertainment room, the other smaller room as a "chill" room, and the 3rd as an office...yeah definitely pre-kid) in LA, with a canyon view, and huge backyard with 20 fruit trees.

We absolutely loved that house and when we first moved in I was moved by the scene of two white, plastic chairs sitting together in the garden. So I painted it. (U. even took photos of me on my knees painting this picturesque scene.) Recently U. told me that initially when he saw my painting, he didn't really think of the house, but now when he sees it, it really reminds him of our old home.

Now the painting sits on the back of the toilet tank in our guest bathroom in our current home. (I guess there could be a joke in there...)

My point here is that the image of two chairs is no longer the image I have of myself. That's no longer my world. I look at that painting now and think of my life as it used to be years ago and I can barely imagine that was me and I lived that life.

As my life is today, I look at that painting and see the missing third little chair there next to the larger two chairs.