Part 1:
Hyung's Carpets.
The epicenter of my family's life.
Is (surprisingly) not completely uncool.
Amidst all the carpet, there is a side area that's devoted to home décor.
It's mostly for sparkly, fancy things that hang from the ceiling.
(But we also sell paintings. Yes, even a print of the Mona Lisa! She's been there, relentlessly smirking, since I was a little girl.)
The home décor area is by far my favorite part of the store.
I always think we should expand it, and often tell Dad as such.
But as he reminds me: “It's carpet that pays the bills, Josephine, not baubles."
Even so, I'll give him and Mom credit. The section is fun. A little tacky, maybe. But fun.
Eclectic.
Interesting.
We have jewel-laden designs done in silver and gold.
We have boho and rustic modern and weird bric-a-brac.
We even have a little whale straight from Hawaii!
And it's my job, Saturday mornings, to clean and polish every single one of them.
I ride to the store with Mom and Dad at 9 AM.
Time to get to work.
The epicenter of my family's life.
Is (surprisingly) not completely uncool.
Amidst all the carpet, there is a side area that's devoted to home décor.
It's mostly for sparkly, fancy things that hang from the ceiling.
(But we also sell paintings. Yes, even a print of the Mona Lisa! She's been there, relentlessly smirking, since I was a little girl.)
The home décor area is by far my favorite part of the store.
I always think we should expand it, and often tell Dad as such.
But as he reminds me: “It's carpet that pays the bills, Josephine, not baubles."
Even so, I'll give him and Mom credit. The section is fun. A little tacky, maybe. But fun.
Eclectic.
Interesting.
We have jewel-laden designs done in silver and gold.
We have boho and rustic modern and weird bric-a-brac.
We even have a little whale straight from Hawaii!
And it's my job, Saturday mornings, to clean and polish every single one of them.
I ride to the store with Mom and Dad at 9 AM.
Time to get to work.
I always start off with one specific piece.
My favorite.
The purple disco ball!
Well, technically, it's not a disco ball. It's a giant, glass, purple ... something.
It acts as the center of the entire area. Like a brilliant sun, who’s gravity holds it all together.
Why is it my favorite?
To me, it's a collection of stories.
Abstract stories spread all upon its surface.
Did you ever do a flip-book as a kid? Where the pages tell a story when you flip really fast?
That's what it's like to me.
Some of the stories I enjoy again and again, every week.
Yet some new narrative always seems to reveal itself to me.
I love the purple disco ball.
My favorite.
The purple disco ball!
Well, technically, it's not a disco ball. It's a giant, glass, purple ... something.
It acts as the center of the entire area. Like a brilliant sun, who’s gravity holds it all together.
Why is it my favorite?
To me, it's a collection of stories.
Abstract stories spread all upon its surface.
Did you ever do a flip-book as a kid? Where the pages tell a story when you flip really fast?
That's what it's like to me.
Some of the stories I enjoy again and again, every week.
Yet some new narrative always seems to reveal itself to me.
I love the purple disco ball.
From there I work clockwise, starting at the left-hand corner closest to the service desk.
Having a plan seems best. Makes it easier to just concentrate and clean whatever's in front of me.
And in front of me then?
Cobwebs!
Many more cobwebs than usual.
I felt slightly guilty destroying some spider's handiwork.
It's not their fault that they mess up our display. They're just doing what their biology tells them.
As a scientist, I have no problem understanding and even empathizing with that fact.
However, as the daughter of two parents who want their store “showroom-clean" ... I had to wipe away the strands.
I cleaned and cleaned, removing every web I found.
Until.
I felt someone staring at me.
I looked to the right.
At the very spider who'd been making all the webs.
And oh, she was pissed.
Having a plan seems best. Makes it easier to just concentrate and clean whatever's in front of me.
And in front of me then?
Cobwebs!
Many more cobwebs than usual.
I felt slightly guilty destroying some spider's handiwork.
It's not their fault that they mess up our display. They're just doing what their biology tells them.
As a scientist, I have no problem understanding and even empathizing with that fact.
However, as the daughter of two parents who want their store “showroom-clean" ... I had to wipe away the strands.
I cleaned and cleaned, removing every web I found.
Until.
I felt someone staring at me.
I looked to the right.
At the very spider who'd been making all the webs.
And oh, she was pissed.
I jumped off my stepstool and fled the scene!
My retreat led me up front, near the cash register.
Rummaging around, I found a coffee cup and a old catalog.
“What are you doing with that?" my father asked.
“Got a situation."
“What kind of situation?"
“There's a spider giving me the eye. Going to catch her and put her outside."
My Dad did not laugh at me, like I feared he would.
I was glad.
“You have a soft heart, Josephine. That is often a good thing. But if the scene was reversed? Do you think that creature would show you mercy?"
“I suppose not."
“Yet still you will save her, won't you?"
“Yes."
“Do what you will. She'll easily get back in here. Most likely you'll have to do this again next week."
“OK. Then I will do it again next week."
I caught the spider and released it on the front sidewalk.
It scrambled out of the sunlight and disappeared into the nearest crevice.
I went back inside.
My cleaning resumed.
Next up? The two ceramic hot air balloons.
To me, they represented hope and transcendence.
And right now, at least to my mind, they seemed to solidly support my cause.
Fly free, little spider.
Fly free.
My retreat led me up front, near the cash register.
Rummaging around, I found a coffee cup and a old catalog.
“What are you doing with that?" my father asked.
“Got a situation."
“What kind of situation?"
“There's a spider giving me the eye. Going to catch her and put her outside."
My Dad did not laugh at me, like I feared he would.
I was glad.
“You have a soft heart, Josephine. That is often a good thing. But if the scene was reversed? Do you think that creature would show you mercy?"
“I suppose not."
“Yet still you will save her, won't you?"
“Yes."
“Do what you will. She'll easily get back in here. Most likely you'll have to do this again next week."
“OK. Then I will do it again next week."
I caught the spider and released it on the front sidewalk.
It scrambled out of the sunlight and disappeared into the nearest crevice.
I went back inside.
My cleaning resumed.
Next up? The two ceramic hot air balloons.
To me, they represented hope and transcendence.
And right now, at least to my mind, they seemed to solidly support my cause.
Fly free, little spider.
Fly free.