WHEN CLOTHES DONT MAKE THE MAN My husband woke me before dawn Saturday morning. He was about to go on a 26 mile run but wanted to show off a belt that could allow him to carry not one but TWO giant black water bottles on his waist. Well? Robert asked, turning to show me and smiling. How do I look? Like a very thirsty patient who escaped from a psychiatric hospital. Robert dropped his smile . He turned away and reached for the blinking flashlight he wears on his forehead when its dark outside. I could see the open wounds on the backs of his arms from where hed fallen down a hill the day before while running, and could also see the deep red rash on his legs when after his fall hed landed in a pile of poison ivy. Back when I first met Robert, Id loved the way he never thought about clothes. Id been thrilled by how he turned up for our first date dressed in a pale pink t-shirt that read BONNIE BELL MAKE-UP MINI MARATHON. It takes GUTS to wear a shirt like that in public, Id thought back in 1978. My father had dressed beautifully. The day my mom left him, shed turned to me as Id stuck my Barbie and Ken dolls in a suitcase and said, Its not good if the Ken doll has more clothes and dresses better than the Barbie doll. Remember that. And I had remembered it --though at the time Id simply thought, Mommy is SOOOOOO CRAZY. Robert started to head out the door looking sad that I hadnt appreciated how great his water jug belt was. I like the belt, I lied. He was surprised. You do? Well, I said more honestly, I like how practical it is, the way it has tubing so you can drink water without using your hands. Its really, um, quite the invention. Muggers will think twice about messing with YOU! He smiled and left I could see him running happily down our street, the peculiar flashlight on his forehead blinking white and red, and as I watched him run faster and faster into the dawn I thought he looked beautiful in a kind of husband-ish way and realized that all in all, I was very pleased with my not-so-perfectly-dressed Ken doll.
Posted on: Mon, 14 Jul 2014 15:17:05 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015