We humans are an odd lot. It is hard to categorize us at all. As a species we murder our own kind, torture when it serves our goals, hurt the people closest to us, steal from one another with gusto, pollute and vandalize our beautiful planet. Oh My, I am depressing myself. Added to this, we go about our daily lives indifferent to what we are as a species. In all this chaos of human suffering and destruction we need a center, we can lean on, someone who is there in good times and bad; that person for me is Susan, my wife. Yeah, I complain often about her quirky ideas and the weird things she does, but when the curtain is drawn and the lights are in my face, she is my anchor and paradoxically sets me free.
Let me elaborate, Susan is one of the most gentle and loving people I have ever met. One of the reasons I married her was that I considered her to be the gentler side of our team. I determined that our children (and I) would benefit from her loving and gentle ways while balancing my more aggressive manor. I was right about this. Our kids are a combination of Susan’s gentleness and my aggressiveness. This has allowed them to do well in a helter-skelter world.
Susan has many interesting hobbies. One of her favorite pastimes is the raising of flowers which surround our house with a rich blanket of colors and foliage. Sometimes there may be as many as 20 different flowers blooming at one time. When people ask about our gardens, I tell them that I landscape the area and Sue plants the flowers. She treats her plants in the same gentle way she treats every other living thing in her life, with kindness and love. Oftentimes she will go to the flower store and see a plant on sale that is just barely alive, will buy it so as to nurse it back to good health. I like this idea for two reasons: it saves us money and allows her to do her magic on a once-dying plant. Usually the plant will recover and become an addition to our beautiful flower garden.
Another one of Sue’s pastimes is her cats. Please do not misunderstand me; I love animals, but I love them more outside of the house than in. I am convinced that her cats do things to get under my skin. I dare not leave a pile of sawdust in my woodshop or it becomes kitty-liter; this drives me up a wall! Many corners in our home have discoloration from the cats’ wiping their nose on that particular spot! Two sections of flooring are destroyed because a cat was inadvertently shut in a room, so it clawed at the floor attempting to get out. There is nothing worse than applying Chap Stick to lips and then removing the cat hairs from ones lips! Have you ever noticed that cats like to lay where you sit so ones clothes are covered with hair? One of the most irritating things about her cats is their frequent fights. These can occur at any time of the day, in the house or outside our window, and they are loud and nerve-grating! By the time one gets to the scene of the fight, they are gone! When I hear a cat fight, I generally root for one of the two, hoping for a brutal victory!
Sue also enjoys reading a great deal. When I read, I enjoy informational or socially significant books. She likes love stories and an occasional historical romance novel. I have tried to get her to read some more substantial books but she refuses. She will often say, “This is not a good book,” at which time I reply, “Why are you reading it?;” but she feels the need to finish any book she starts regardless of whether she likes it or not.
Sue’s last hobby may not actually be a hobby, but I have come to the conclusion that it is for her a hobby. Sue is late for almost everything . I have often joked that it was well into our marriage before we actually sat down at the beginning of a movie. It is entertaining watching her try to be on time, as she scurries about dreaming up things that need to be done. I have learned to tell her we need to be someplace an hour before we really need to be there; this usually gets us there on time, which makes me very happy.
So now you know a little about Susan, the love of my life. We just celebrated 36 years of marriage last week with our good friends, Tim and Peggy Stewart, who were married the same day we were. The four of us are talking about going to Alaska for our anniversaries. 36 years of marriage have taught me that staying married is a full-time job, and just like Susan’s gardens marriage needs constant attention. There are ups-and-downs which give definition to life. It would be my hope that everyone experiences the joys of having a soulmate to help navigate the rough seas of life. I know my life would be considerably less without her. Make sure you tell your special person how much they mean to you! It is so easy and so wrong not to.
Cosmic Charley's Blog 