Today
is my wife's birthday; the most recent of the thirty birthdays I have shared
with her. Since both of us agreed to not make big productions out of our
birthdays, this one will probably pass quietly. She will refuse my offer to buy
her something, although I occasionally have done so anyhow. Tuesday afternoon
we lunched together at a local Chinese buffet at her request that I quickly
deemed to be her birthday LEO. (Midway through our meal she informed me that
this was not her birthday meal so maybe we will lunch somewhere else today.)
We
have shared a lot of happiness and unfortunately some grief. We have witnessed three
wonderful young ladies grow to adulthood, marry, and have children. We have experienced
two sons-in-law and a daughter-in-law become exes, mourned the death of a
son-in-law, and welcomed two new sons-in-law into our family. We have rejoiced
at the births of seven grandchildren and played a role in the life of each as
they grew to adulthood and subsequently gave us four great grandchildren to
enjoy. We have mourned the deaths of four of her grandparents and my parents.
Together
we have toured the country on a motorcycle and then in an RV. We've gone on
cruises and she has accompanied me to conferences in several different cities.
We have remodeled a house and built another; started a mini-farm, split and
stacked many cords of wood, and cleared scrub in the hot Florida sun. She has
been my loyal supporter, proof reader and editor through the trials and
tribulations of writing and publishing eight novels, designed the covers for
four of them and advised me on covers for the other four.
Cindy
has given me the opportunity to experience love like that that so infused the
blind gentleman I wrote about yesterday. We have lived, and are living, Margaret
Mead's three stages; romance and intimacy are still integral components of our
togetherness, procreation vicariously through our children and our grandchildren,
and companionship throughout our years together. I like Cindy a lot and love
her even more. She brings a smile to my face most every time I see her walk
into a room.
Thank you, my
darling, for these wonderful years! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
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