Another Year and What Do You Get?

Another year older and deeper in debt perhaps? I think that goes back to an old Tennessee Ernie Ford song – which most of you probably don’t know and which makes you shake your heads and say things like “what is that old lady talking about?” Don’t judge guys, you’ll get there one day too. To that age when kids shake their heads and make comments as you share, or try to share, memories of your childhood.

All of this because husband had a birthday the other day and our neighborhood appeared at our door in the evening bearing cards with good wishes – or not necessarily good wishes, since all of this neighborhood shares a bit of a warped sense of humor – cake and ice cream. Delicious cake, as you will see.

Cake bearing three candles, and all we will say about the age husband has reached is that it is a number divisible by three. Also an age where blowing out three candles is much easier than trying to blow out 12 candles. As well as an age where it would take a much larger cake to bear the real number of candles. But I shall not say more about the age as it is one of those three-monkey things. I will not speak the evil age, so you will not hear the evil age and we will not use the evil age number of candles so that you will not have to see the evil age.

This neighborhood, our neighborhood, is a generous one. Generous with love, giving, time, friendship, ofttimes with wine and food. Always with sharing, always with concern and caring. It is those qualities that bring them to the door with cake and ice cream, knowing that it is more difficult now for husband to come to them. Knowing that it is more difficult now for me to prepare for a celebration. Not that I have no time, but the focus is often difficult.

This is one of those blessings of our lives at this time – this neighborhood.