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> SOME THINGS YOU KEEP
> > Some things you keep. Like good teeth. Warm coats. Bald husbands. > > They're good for you, reliable and practical and so sublime that to > throw > > them away would make the garbage man a thief. > > So you hang on, because something old is sometimes better than something > > new, and what you know is often better than a stranger. > > These are my thoughts, they make me sound old, old and tame, and dull at > a > > time when everybody else is risky and racy and flashing all that's new > and > > improved in their lives. > > New careers, new thighs, new lips, new cars. The world is dizzy with > > trade-ins. I could keep track, but I don't think I want to. > > I grew up in the fifties with practical parents - a mother, God bless > her, > > who washed aluminum foil after she cooked in it, then reused it - and > > still does. A father who was happier getting old shoes fixed than buying > > new ones. > > They weren't poor, my parents, they were just satisfied. Their marriage > > was good, their dreams focused. Their best friends lived barely a wave > > away. I can see them now, Dad in trousers and tee shirt and Mom in a > > housedress, lawnmower in one's hand, dishtowel in the other's. It was a > > time for fixing things - a curtain rod, the kitchen radio, screen door, > > the oven door, the hem in a dress. > > Things you 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 father died, and on that clear autumn night, in the chill of > > the hospital room, I was struck with the pain of learning that sometimes > > there isn't any 'more.' Sometimes what you care about most gets all used > > up and goes away, never to return. > > So, while you have it, it's best to love it and care for it and fix it > > when it's broken and heal it when it's sick. That's true for marriage > > and old cars and children with bad report cards and dogs with bad hips > > and aging parents. You keep them because they're worth it, because > you're > > worth it. > > Some things you keep. Like a best friend that moved away or a classmate > > you grew up with, there's just some things that make life > > important....people you know are special....and you KEEP them close! > > Author unknown > > > > > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > -- > > ---- > > > > > > > > > > > > --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.370 / Virus Database: 205 - Release Date: 05-06-02 |
