Sent To Me

Postby **Merlin** » Wed Feb 22, 2006 4:10 am

by my daughter-in-law. I thought it was appropriate to share.

Keeper

I grew up in the 40/ 50's 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... 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, and dish-towel 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, eating, renewing, I wanted just
once to be wasteful. Waste meant affluence. Throwing
things away meant you knew there'd always be more .

But then my father died, and on that clear summer'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 tractors.. 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!

I received this from someone who thinks I am a
'keeper', so I've sent it to the people I think of in
the same way.

**Sponsor**

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Sent To Me

Sent To Me

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