The Arrival

January 3, 2014

The Arrival

5:30pm Kenzie and I arrive at Main St. Cheese in Hancock, NH, cars full and bellies empty, (after my delay at forgotten keys and bulk food excitement at the Brattleboro Co-op,) ready to hunker into a new bare space away from the -15 evening chill. Orange tree blossom intact; other plants’ leaves droop, hung, frozen. We are greeted by warm hugs, gin and tonics, and a toilet paper pyramid under the sink. Sarah fixes us a 3-goat cheese plate and tells us stories about buying her wedding dress and moving to New Mexico on a whim. I eye the hand towel I want to hang. Kenzie bonds with Sarah over grizzlies and black bears while Stefan cooks fish curry. Sarah says, “I think we should just say exactly what we’re feeling…you can’t offend me…like I’m going to scurry off now.” Over dinner, 12-year old Julian, giggling, insists that Stefan tell “the pudding story” (which I didn’t get) and the “German baking story” and “ooh!” insists that we play “spoons” after dinner (except we use dice). Kenzie knocks the dice across the room and scrambles after it to beat me in the first round. We decline another round to unload the second car, with numb fingers, eager to settle, and I sort the bulk food mason jars and Kenzie sorts the medicine cabinet and we sort and we sort and shuffle this and that around until we sweep the clothes off our bed and nestle into (each other) and the night.

-Stacia

(Kenzie's photo immediately after...)