My Old-Fashioned Life

Do you ever sit there and think, "wow, I am really living *this* life?"  I am having one of those surreal moments when it all seems real but it isn't what I expected.  The partner is working a wonderful dream job, I am a stay at home mom, our kids are doing alright, we have the dog and the cat.  No yard or picket fence yet, but getting there.  We are surrounded by people that love us, both our friends and church folk.  In our hometown we have family that are supportive of us and our move here, loving that we're doing what is right for our family.  Huh, things are pretty good.

I am listening to classical music (currently Beethoven, actually).  I am looking up quilting patterns and talking about what is going on at church.  My friend and I are talking about the kids and what play dates to have.  It all seems so surreal.  

Got me thinking though - some parts of life are really becoming extinct.  When's the last time you talked on the phone?  Mailed a letter?  Listened to the radio?  Rolled down the windows in the car, rather than just turning on the air?  Made food from scratch?  Ironed? 

Now, I don't think a person needs to do any of these things as a sign that they are a well-rounded person.  We all do what works for us, and there is no need to go into Mommy Wars about ironing.  But, for me, I like to do more "old fashioned" things.  It seems at such odds with the rest of who I am.  Liberal, out-spoken, annoyingly political, loud - and yet I'm listening to Beethoven and thinking about needle-point.  I was trying to put myself into a stereotype - Liberal = all electronics, modern, contemporary.  This isn't the case at all.  I can be politically liberal and practice my religion, quilt, make homemade bread.   Really, it furthers my Liberal thinking.  This life is the life for me, but I can't make anyone else live this life.  You have the choice to live how you would like.  Don't let your own notions tell you otherwise.