Sunday Dinner 9/27/2009

We are blessed to have the girls living so close and will treasure the opportunities that this affords us. When they were first married we started the tradition of Sunday dinners at our house. I am still trying to figure out if they come because they love to be with us, or if it is because dinner is cooked and the food is free. Stephanie and Jim come every Sunday, Sandra and Tyler come every other Sunday, Scott- he comes when he wants and it makes my day complete when all three are together.
This past Sunday the conversation at the table was lively. Debbie and Dan came by as we were finishing dinner and then Scott and Destiny arrived. We were all talking about different things, Scott and Destiny telling us about their weekend visit with her family in Napa (north of us and in the wine country), Scott gave me gift, it looked like a bunch of grapes, but it was made out of smallish red colored polished stones. It is really pretty. Somehow the conversation turned to Jeff who delighted us all with his lively storytelling of his love of keeping the same useful objects for many years. Since we have been married he has carried a comb and pocketknife in his pocket. Every morning they are picked up and put in his pocket as a part of his daily dressing routine. Not just any comb, not just any pocketknife. It has been the same brand of comb for the whole time we have been married, when we find ‘the comb’ we buy about 6 and keep them safely tucked away in a dresser draw. It is just the right length-about 4”, the teeth are spaced further apart at one end than the other, it is black, it is simple. He also carries a small pocket knife and while several have been confiscated over the years at airport securities, he religiously finds the same brand, same knife in the same color-a wood grained plastic handle that has a texture to it like bark. In 2004 the Uncle Henry knife company went out of business after 100 years. This news kicked off the long search for another pocketknife that most closely resembled his beloved ‘Uncle Henry’. Everyone was laughing and asking…why? Loose the comb or the pocketknife and life stops until the missing object has been found. How he loves those 2 odd items and is not complete without them.