My parents’ 40 anniversary celebration was a very special milestone. The entire family gathered to honor their love and their dedication for one another. Mom even wore red to “match” my dad since it was the color he loved.
However, behind all the smiles and laughter, I could feel something wasn’t quite right. Unlike anyone in that room, I knew my mom all to well to know that something bothered her. The smile on the photo I took of her and my dad didn’t seem genuine. It was a weak, pale, forced smile, and there was a reason behind it.
When she went to the kitchen, I followed after her. “Mom, is everything okay?” I asked her. Her eyes filled with tears. “You know honey, your dad is a nice man… he’s just not the same man I married.”
Her words shocked me. They were together for 40 long years.
“Sometimes people grow together. Sometimes they just grow. And you get so used to pretending everything’s fine, you forget what not pretending feels like,” my mom said. She then held my hand and make me promise to never wait forty years if I ever find myself in such situation. “Speak up,” my mom said.
Our conversation was interrupted by someone opening the front door. It was my dad who took one of his “quick walks.”
The truth was that, over the years, he had learned to rely on my mom for everything, and eventually, he stopped trying – my mom seemed to have had enough of it.
After some time, my dad returned home carrying a paper bag in his hands.
“I was going to wait until dessert, but I think I’ll just do it now,” he said.
“Do what?” my mother asked, as stunned as everyone else.
It was then that my father opened the bag and took out a fancy gold bracelet. He handed it to my mom and explained, his voice cracking as he spoke, that he knew he had been distant but wanted to change. He assured her that he loved her, appreciated her, and noticed her, even if it didn’t always feel like it.
“Why now?” my mom asked.
“It’s because I overheard your conversation,” dad answered. “And because I want to try to be better.”
Mom smiled. It wasn’t a forced smile. I knew she was glad dad truly wanted to change for the better.
The following morning, my mom no longer wore red to “match” my dad. She wore a color she loved and hadn’t worn in years.
“You know what?” she said, “I’m starting a pottery class, and your dad is accompanying me.”
It was a beginning of something knew between them. It took some time, but they reconnected again, and life felt beautiful again.
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Bored Daddy
Love and Peace
