It wasn't that I was squeaky clean as I slipped between the sheets; it wasn't that I no longer smelled of 'hard work sweat.' The reason Linda gave me for liking it when I get a shower at night was that she didn't have to wipe down the shower walls after finishing her nightly oblations. I guess 45 years of marriage have a way of sorting out the stuff that really matters. I got the best end of the deal, for sure. For years, she has been telling me that she would hate to have to do my job. "It's like doing a term paper every week for the rest of your life." Well, maybe, but I retired from all that last July, and she still plans and prepares dinner for me almost every evening, does most of the laundry, cleans the toilets, vacuums the carpets, mops the floors, dusts the furniture and knick-knacks. The latter, by her own admission, may not be her forte. If it is higher than her eyesight, for all intents and purposes, it doesn't exist. Her eye level being somewhat below mine...maybe we ought not go there tonight.
My point is, if wiping down the shower walls makes up for all she does day in and day out, year after year, there is no question about it: I hit the jackpot! And I'm not even started on her loyalty, tenderness, compassion, faith, and her stubborn persistence for putting up with me. She has given of herself as long as I've known her. That selfless giving spirit is what first attracted me to her back in 1968, and it hasn't diminished over the years. I can't think of any of my friends or hers who wouldn't say I got the best end of the deal when we married. There is much tonight for which I could give thanks, but except for the grace of God in Jesus Christ, none exceed my gratitude for this woman I've loved, and who has loved me for over 45 years.
No comments:
Post a Comment