A week or so ago, Moca was delighted to find that we had left an empty box on the carpet. She jumped in and spent a significant chunk of time just sitting there, looking out at the world and feeling cozy. At least, "cozy" is what I assume she was feeling; she was looking very serious. Maybe she was feeling predatory, about to jump out of her cave and attack some unwitting spider crawling across the carpet. You never know.That made me think of the hidey-holes that I had as a kid. They were places where I could scoot in and feel alone for a while. Some of them had a view of the world, and some didn't. One of them was a little spot in the hibiscus hedge where I would skinny in and then sit quietly, watching the world from behind the hibiscus leaves. The only problem was, my hibiscus hedge hidey-hole (oh, how I love alliteration) was in a spot where no one much went by. On one side the ice-cream man might ride by on his bicycle along Scott Road, or a boy might come by, herding his goats down the road. On the other side, I might see a gardener sweeping up leaves some distance away. Boring.
My dad had a "hidey-hole" of sorts for himself. As a mission doctor, he needed to get away now and then. So he would drive five miles to the swimming club and settle into a chair in the clubhouse, reading a magazine and listening to the ocean waves hitting the rocks below.
If my mom had a "hidey-hole," I don't know where it was. Oh wait! I do! She would go downtown to the dressmaker's hole-in-the-wall shop and spend some time drawing dress designs, which the dressmaker would whip up from scratch from the fabric Mama brought her. It was cool and dark in the dressmaker's shop, and I'm sure it was a nice break from the hustle and bustle of the hospital and delivering babies.
Everyone, I think, needs some sort of hidey-hole. Be it a place where you go to be alone, or something you do to take you away from the usual work-a-day world, you need a mental and physical break on a regular basis, something more than just sleep. Obviously, one of mine is blogging. What's yours?
This is ironic today, Ginger. Yesterday my youngest daughter/middle child disappeared. For about an hour. I started looking for her; couldn't locate her in any usual napping spots. Didn't see her anywhere. Finally checked the bathroom.
ReplyDeleteShe was in the bathtub. Reading. No water - though it had started as a bath, when the water got cold she let it all out and decided to stay in the tub to finish her book. So there she sat, in a water-less tub, reading.
She said, "It's the only place I have where I can stay focused and not get distracted. Or interrupted."
So HER hidey hole is the tub. Mine? Who knows....
Hey Ginger, your cat is adorable! Loved this post about hidey-holes. I know what you mean, those comfy spaces where we can just get away and clear our heads. When we were kids, my sis and I loved to run to the top of the hill (field) behind our house - there was a clump of trees we used to hang out in. In college, it was any quiet stairwell in the dorm. Nowadays, it's my back patio - well, when the weather gets nice. You didn't say where your place is these days!
ReplyDeleteMine is the bathtub too, but with a warm bubble bath, candles, and some of my favorite music playing which helps me to relax and meditate. It's truly my "think time" and lots of decisions are made/issues are resolved for me in the bathtub. :c)
ReplyDeleteMy latest one is cake decorating. It's not a place I go physically but when I'm working on a cake I get to put everything else away in my brain and focus on the cake that is sitting in front of me. What can I do to make this piece of yummy treat look as beautiful as possible? No worries about the upcoming transfer or the baskets of clothes waiting for me to wash them. Just me and my cake.
ReplyDeleteCats are the best at finding hidey holes--or just plain playing in the box.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was a child, my favorite place was under the mosquito net--all tent like, yet sheer enough to see through.