A Need To Say Thanks

As we near graduation we begin to think about all the people that helped make that day possible. There are many people on my thank you list, but my wife gets most of the thanks. My wife even said that she likes to read my column.

Hey, that’s great she likes to read what I write. Great until I heard that she felt my words on paper were more interesting than in person. A slap in the face – heck no – a pretty nice compliment if you ask me … and if you are here reading then you are asking me!

Her interest in my writing is heartfelt and sincere, and after 35 years – and counting – of marriage it is probably a blessing that when she has had enough of me in writing it is easier to stop reading and go on to other things than it is to have to listen to me verbally ramble on. And like most guys who are handy and able to fix just about anything that breaks, I removed my off button years ago.

Seriously though, she’s a saint. She supports me with most of my wildest dreams and has put up with my many incarnations. Sometimes she even pitches in to help. Like when I started my cabinet shop in San Diego – man, that was a lifetime ago.

Work was pouring in and I was spending an untold number of hours in the shop creating sawdust. Since I was spending more time at the shop than at home, Angela came by for a visit … just to say “hi.” After a while she went into my office to get away from the noise. I became concerned after she had been there for about a half hour and went to see if she was feeling alright. She was, I wasn’t. Seeing that the shop work was keeping me from my office and paper work, she kindly sorted through the bills and invoices and filed them all alphabetically and put them in my filing cabinet for me. It was so nice of her to have saved me hours of doing it myself. On the other hand I would now have to spend hours un-filing the papers and re-stacking them on the desk into my own piling system.

You know the one … the “I need to bill you now pile,” the “to be paid now pile,” the “this can wait pile,” the “I’ll get to you when I have the money pile” and the “your bill is not even close to being due so stop bugging me pile.”

After some discussion about my crazy system she agreed that she didn’t understand how my system worked and would never touch my desk of insanity again. Things have gone smoothly ever since. I get most things done on time – in my mind that is – and she just shakes her head in disbelief that I am able to find anything on my desk or elsewhere.

Sometimes things do get misplaced and it takes awhile to find them, but regardless of who’s filing system is used there is something that I know I will always be able to find when I need it … her support.

That’s for your support Ange … it’s been a long road here, but we are almost there.

 

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