We're Going to Meet Your Wife

The Lord helped to arrange a huge blessing for me through a long-time brother and friend. I got to fly back to Pennsylvania to spend a few days with my son and all his family.  It had been three years since I'd been back there and my young grandson had grown to a towering 6'3" tall! We all piled together in a family truck for two days to enjoy watching him play in a high-level showcase baseball tournament. I so enjoyed this opportunity to disconnect from my normal routines, sit in the sunshine and soft breezes, and cheer for my grandson's team. It was almost like life was "normal" again! But I have a story to share with you and I suppose this story illustrates the beauty of the not-so-normal life I lead at home with my husband, John.

Our dear friend, Duane who was taking care of John while I was away, was busy cleaning up dinner dishes as he mentioned to John, "You can get ready for our trip to the airport. We're going to meet your wife." Duane tells me that John disappeared into his bedroom and spent a little time back there while Duane got the kitchen cleaned up. Next thing he knew, John walked into the kitchen with a long-sleeved pin striped dress shirt, his best dress slacks and a pair of shiny red-wine-colored  shoes he hasn't worn in ages. His unshaved face was still scraggly but his outfit was quite amazing!

When they drove up to the curb at the airport you can imagine my surprise in seeing my dear husband all dressed up, as if for a fancy date. I commented to him how nice he looked and Duane chimed in, "Yeah, I told him we were going to get his wife!"  Normally John has great difficulty in finding and choosing clothing and I have to help him dress. But it seems that he had reached back somewhere in his memory and was filled with the desire to dress up for this trip to the airport!

After we arrived back home, I tucked him into bed and said prayers over him as I always do, and then I headed into the master bathroom. There were two other long-sleeve dress shirts laying across the counter. I picked up the slacks he had taken off and they jingled and jangled, as I reached into one pocket and found literally dozens of dimes, nickels and quarters!  I reached my hand into the other pocket and pulled out an expired driver's license from 2016, three or four of his favorite family photographs from about 40 years ago, an old, empty wallet and a very old, dried up and mutilated denture! 

Oh, John. Somewhere deep in the recesses of your mind you were all dressed up and ready for this date with me! You had money to pay for dinner, your old wallet and photos to share with me, and a spare denture just in case you needed it!  They were all things that show you are still a man who dearly loves his wife, and wants to make the evening special for her. It was a night I will not soon forget. And when I went out to your tool shed this morning to find a drill that Duane needed to do some repairs, there were two MORE long-sleeve dress shirts out there, sprawled among your old screwdrivers, wrenches, and socket sets! You must have had quite a time deciding which shirt to wear. It must have been so important to you, especially since I had been gone for a week. 

You picked the right shirt. And I picked the right husband. And now we are back together again in our old routines and our Dementia-driven life.  But I'll always remember the wide grin on your face and the jingle in your pocket when you came to the airport to meet your wife!