New View

Divided-lite.  Even the name suggests an unclear view.  Sometimes old, outdated views need to be replaced, and opened up to a clearer picture.

Windows? Yes.  Life?  Yes.

Part of our three-room remodel involves replacing 60-year-old windows.  The wooden, divided-lite windows that are currently in the house look great when you drive down the old, dirt road and glance toward the ranch-style home.  They blend, they fit, and they seem to be aesthetically pleasing.  Is that enough?  Am I o.k. with inefficient, outdated windows that restrict my view and cloud my vision?  No. Sure, 60 years ago they worked.  They don’t work now.  60 years ago that’s what people had, they didn’t have many choices and they were comfortable with them.  I want my vision to improve; I want my views to be as open and beautiful as possible. 

Windows?  Yes.  Life?  Yes.

Bill replaced the first window of the remodel yesterday.  The dining room window that looks beyond the crepe myrtle and toward to the yard, the little free library, and an old plaster building across the street.  I love looking through that window.  I see a lot of things I love when I look out there.  I’m used to it, I’ve been looking out that window for over 50 years.  A standard double-hung wood window, divided into eight parts by wood that has been painted over with many, many coats of paint; a screen on the outside restricting the clarity and taking away from the vivid and beautiful colors of the yard. The old glass is scratched, thin, and like the other windows in the house, has a slight wave to it, which adds some distortion.  In addition to the appearance of the old windows, they aren’t efficient.  They don’t work properly anymore.  They don’t fully open, some don’t open at all. They have been painted shut and the longer they (and we) remain comfortable with that stubbornness, cloudy vision, and inefficiency, the longer our beautiful visions will be blocked. 

Windows?  Yes.  Life?  Yes.

Its not always easy working on a remodel.  Sometimes it’s hard to let go of things that remind us of good times and how things used to be. Change can be difficult and scary.  Is the new better?  And what do we mean by better?  Is better about looks, efficiency, the new view we will have? Will the unknown make me happy or will I long to go back to what seemed to be comfortable even though it wasn’t the best. 

A new window.  A window divided only in to two parts, and then only because it needs those to parts to open fully and bring in lots of fresh air into the house.  Double-thick glass to keep the house cool in the summer and warm in the winter.  The new screen only covers the bottom half of the fully functioning window.  Why restrict the entire view when you can open your eyes to see more clearly?

The new window was installed with great care and precision. It looks great, it works well, and it is one more step in what will be a long process in remodeling.  Moving forward. That new window yesterday is not just a new window.  It kind of symbolizes how I’ve been feeling lately – wanting a clearer view, a new vision, one that will be more efficient and open me up to more beauty that the world has to offer.  Not every house can have all new windows.  Some need to work with the ones they have.  Fresh paint, maybe a little sand paper to smooth out rough edges, and sometimes the glass needs a lot of work to be able to see out clearly, but the view can always be improved.  I want to see it, and help open it up to others so that they may see it too.  No more divided-lites.

Windows?  Yes.  Life?  Yes.

“Better keep yourself clean and bright.  You are the window through which you must see the world.” 

~  George Bernard Shaw