Baby Blues

Recently I had re-injured my right knee, an old warrior wound from our days as Tae Kwon Do black belts, going back ten years now. Yara , our new young dog, is a very fast walker, and on one of those fast paced 45 minute walks I felt the familiar pain in my knee come back. So, I have to be patient the next five, six weeks, and so does Yara, as she wonders why her leash stays hung up by the front door. It does not take much to marvel at our wonderfully engineered bodies, or to experience how fragile their machinery can be. So, when my husband learned I was having a hard time painting my toes  my favorite baby blue color, he humbly volunteered for the job. I was so bummed out to feel so dependent and helpless with such a basic task, but was also happy to accept his kind offer. As I sat in the chair and he gave my toes the royal treatment, I started feeling better, and when he started  painting them carefully as the last step in his well done pedicure , I was really grateful and relieved that  would be able to wear my summer sandals and flip-flops without embarrassment. It was our 26 year anniversary that day, and even though he got me a dozen beautiful white-pink roses and a beautiful necklace, the gift I'll treasure most are my baby blue toes he painted for me when I was really frustrated with my sore and unbending knee. It made me feel loved and valued when I was feeling awkward and insecure and impatient because of it. Love is never sweeter than when it accepts us at our most vulnerable, most unlovable. You can learn to do without a lot of stuff, or deal with a lot of problems and stress, as long as you have a family who cares about you. That family was once large for me, with siblings, aunts and uncles and a lot of cousins. Now it is quite small, but there is nothing small about the dignity and care it provides my hart, body and soul. My husband and I grew up on opposite sides of the planet, in very different back grounds, and that can be a challenge, even after being together for almost 30 years, but he never fails to surprise me with his humble, warm heart.