Julia said to me this morning, “Dad, when are you going to do something with all of mom’s old clothes? If you are going to give them away, you can just give some of them to me.”
“Yes, Julia, I do need to do something with them,” I said as she walked away wearing a pair of Anita’s tall brown heels.
Early on, I decided I wanted to give Anita’s suits to a place like Dress for Success that supplies low income women with professional attire. But the time had to be right. Anita’s clothes are part of her and I still have a connection to her. Looking through her closet stirs feelings. At one point, it will be the right time.
But what about the rest of her clothes? Many would be Goodwill worthy, but many more contain sentimental value. I stepped into the closet this morning and looked through her shirts and tops. I found this a brown t-shirt with Isaiah 40:31 and part of the verse printed on the front. “But those who hope int he Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles…”
This is a favorite verse of many, and in fact I have a small card with this verse attached to the underside of my van’s visor so I see it every time I get in the car. Coincidence?
I remember when Anita got this shirt. We were “taking a break” (that means not working for her) and strolling through the Town Center Mall in Kennesaw. There was a vendor in the middle of the hall with a stand selling various items with Christian themes. She stopped to look and we spoke with the owner. He had a red “N” attached to his Crocs and I asked him about it.
Turns out that he was also from Nebraska and we talked for a minute about our home state. Anita was keen on getting a shirt but also had her eye on a steel coffee travel mug with part of John 3:16 on it. In the end, she bought the shirt and received the mug for free. What a blessing. I still have the mug and use it a lot. It’s my favorite one I have.
Today I pulled out the shirt and wore it (she bought an XL). I will put it on my side of the closet now and wear it until it’s not wearable any more. It will remind me of Anita and of God’s strength.
The rest of the clothes can wait.
That’s so awesome! My parents always shared clothing–especially T-shirts and jeans and I always thought it was cool that they could be that close. Hopefully she has more things you can “share” with her!
If there are any t-shirts that are not really “wearable” for whatever reason, you could have them made into a quilt. That way you could snuggle it for a long time, or hang it up to display or whatever. I’m sure your NE connections could hook you up with someone skilled in that area!