"Oh the things that
happen when we believe in magic!"
The mystical
places our minds carry us as children, imprint our lives from that time on.
When I was a tyke,
living in a small rural village on the shores of the ancient Ohio River, our
father would make a practice to tell us stories on Saturday nights. This was
most special as much of the time dad was on the road, in faraway places. He
built the steel skeletons of high rises, skyscrapers, other commercial
buildings and bridges.
Our dad was an
Ironworker!
He walked the
skinny steel beams high in the air, facing danger and death daily without fear.
Because of that, he was gone most every week and only came home on the
weekends.
Our father was a
man of many wonderful and exciting self taught skills. Dad was not of a
singular bent, but took life’s full measure readily. Amongst his other talents,
he spoke several languages with aplomb. He was vaudevillian entertainer, a
reporter and editor for newspapers, a teacher, a Chief Boatswain’s Mate, a
Shawnee Elder, a enchanting singer and a skilled medical practitioner. He had always
wanted to become a doctor.
All these life
experiences of course, made his story telling most special!
His fables could
transport one, child or elder, to places created in his fertile mind, so vivid
one could feel the imagined breeze, taste the fruit and smell the sea air.
He was the most
skilled storyteller I have ever heard.
My dad made magic
real for me, this once a little fella, now a septuagenarian… and that belief
has never faded.
What does that
have to do with a Magic Drawer?
For one to
understand the why, I needed to set the scene for you to understand, that although
I don’t actually believe that things magically happen, I do embrace the
possibility.
In my home as an example,
there are indeed Magic Drawers. Every day when I arise, I go to the magic underwear
drawer, with complete confidence that I will find fresh, neatly folded,
laundered boxers and socks!
Voile! Like magic,
they are always there.
This morning my
belief was shaken. The drawer was not filled with mystic parcels of undergarments,
but was nearly bare. I called out, “Honey, where are my new special sock I just
got for my birthday?” Her reply, “We’ve been away for shipping and doctoring
for the last couple of days and I haven’t done the laundry.”
As the younger
generations are want to say, “Like Duh?”
Yes, the secret of
the Magic Drawers is the loving care of my wife and life partner Lolita. She is the
real magician in our domicile. She is the cause of my Magic Drawer. And I am
forever thankful.
I am one happy
child, in this time worn skin of an old man, knowing that there really is a
Magic Drawer!
BTW: I do not burden
Lo with all the household chores, but do pitch in and do the wash, cook and
clean a fair share of the time. Nonetheless, I greatly appreciate the little
things that she does, in her magical way… every much as I do the grand and
wonderful acts that are a part of our half century love affair.
Yes, we have a
Magic Drawer in our home!
