Keepers

(Note: The following was sent to me by a regular correspondent. I dedicate it to my family back in Ohio -- my mother, my father, my brother Steve, and my sisters Mary and Pat. In 1970, Dad was diagnosed with MS. He has declined gradually over the years, to the point where he is now in a wheelchair, and Mom takes care of him at home. After she suffered a minor stroke just over a year ago, my siblings rallied, and the grandchildren with them. As I remained informed from a distance, this family of mine takes care of its own. My parents celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary last June. Most of us agree they've been a tough act to follow.)

I grew up in the fifties with practical parents. A Mother, God love her, who washed aluminum foil after she cooked in it, then reused it.

She was the original recycle queen, before they had a name for it... and a Father who was happier getting old shoes fixed than buying new ones.

Their marriage was good, their dreams focused. Their best friends lived barely a wave away. I can see them now, Dad in trousers, tee shirt and a hat and Mom in a house dress, lawn mower in one hand, dishtowel in the other.

It was the time for fixing things -- a curtain rod, the kitchen radio, screen door, the oven door, the hem in a dress. Things we keep. It was a way of life, and sometimes it made me crazy! All that re-fixing, reheating, renewing, I wanted just once to be wasteful. Waste meant affluence. Throwing things away meant there'd always be more.

But then my Mother died, and on that clear winter's night, in the warmth of the hospital room, I was struck with the pain of learning that sometimes there isn't any more!!!!!! Sometimes, what we care about most gets all used up and goes away...never to return.

So...while we have it...it's best we love it.....and care for it.....and fix it when it's broken.....and heal it when it's sick. This is true.....for marriage.....and old cars.....and children with bad report cards.....and dogs with bad hips.....and aging parents.....and grandparents.

We keep them because they are worth it, because we are worth it. Some things we keep. Like a best friend that moved away -- or -- a classmate we grew up with. There are just some things that make life important, like people we know who are special.....and so, we keep them close!

(Anonymous)