Day 11

For each day of November, I am going to post an excerpt of the novel I'm working on for the next 30 days through National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo). The goal is to reach 50,000 words in 30 days. And, go!

I remember sitting on the floor of my mother-in-law’s kitchen that summer she died. I was sitting across from her daughter, my husband’s sister - who I’d known since she was 14-years old.  She was the one to find my mother-in-law, and her grief was palpable. We were looking over the teacup collection together – she’d chose one and then I’d choose one. The siblings were given the task of dividing up the estate into thirds. 

Nothing was written down in regard to who got what – in her letter to her children, she asked them to come together and in the spirit of family decide who got which pieces of furniture, paintings, heirlooms, etc.

It was an amazing time. It was one of the hardest experiences in my life and everything seemed significant, sharper and acute.

One of the pieces of furniture that we brought home was a small mirrored cabinet. It stands on delicate, curved legs and used to contain her figurines and collectibles. It has a key that opens the cabinet and it sticks a little when the door swings open. 

This is where I keep the teacups that my sister-in-law and I divided between us that day. Some of the cups are very ornate with gold details and others are more flowery and girly. We often have dinner parties and the teacups and saucers come out with dessert and coffee. 

I adore my collection, and often rotate the cups that are used so none feel left out.