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It was my dad who settled my beautiful darling Samantha into a comfortable chair. He chose one that was not too low. I love that man!
But I almost changed my mind when he pulled out his scrapbook.
In a panic, “Dad! No, I beg you! Not thescrapbook!” I pleaded with him but he just shook his head with a happy grin and scooted a chair next to Samantha.
And so it was that Samantha saw all the snapshots of me from about age nine or ten with my various inventions and otherrepairs, upgrades, and improvements (and assorted disasters) that fell under my curious hand.
Genevieve and Roberta hung around and added more details about me as a kid, most of which had Samantha laughing.
Laughing at me? Well, then. Harrumph! I went off with Roberta to check on the music and the goings-on in the kitchen.
Samantha got very interested when my dad got to the more recent years on the pages of his last scrapbook. It was all my government-commissioned inventions. Samantha got very wide-eyed at some of them.
“I am simply awestruck, baby! I reallyamdating the arch-rival to Tony Stark!”
I noticed my mom kept peeking over Dad’s shoulder to see how far they had come. My mother could hardly wait to have Samantha to herself and that made me laugh out loud at her!
“Busted, Mom!”
Mom just put her hand on her hip and shook her finger at me, “Son of mine! You can no longer keep this girl secret from me! I'm waiting for her verdict on my dinner rolls and my Dutch apple pie. I made them from scratch, especially for the occasion.”
“Wooo, Mama! Showing off, huh? You never madeusscratch bread before!”
“Yes, I have. But I got out of the habit when you were all pretty young. It got to be too much work when I went back to school.”
So my mom beamed at Jerry in the kitchen, as he showered her with Ooh’s and Ahh’s and Oh-yummy’s as he took big sniffs of her savory dishes.
At last, we all settled at the table.
My dad took over, saying, “We have new friends. And I'll be honest with our new friends. My family and I have never gone to church. But we have faith. We have gratitude. We have always had faith in each other. We have always known the universe waslooking out for us and here we are. All of us are prosperous. All of us are healthy and whole. Well, at least most of us,” and he grinned at Samantha, “And hopefully becoming wiser with every day that goes by.”
Mom chimed in, “I’m grateful for three healthy children who know how to live well and love with an open heart. I’m grateful beyond words for a husband I have loved and who has loved me back since childhood.”
I saw that Davie and Jerry were reaching for each other's hands with tears in their eyes.
Mom concluded, “We have each other. We are blessed with many resources and skills. We are blessed with new friends. And,” with a louder and more dramatic voice, “With food that's getting cold as I speak. So Amen, and let's dive in!”
My sisters and I chimed in with Dad, “Amen!” followed closely by Davie, Jerry, and Samantha’s own, “Amen!”
Dad did the honors of cutting the turkey as everything else was passed around.
A scrumptious meal was had, leftovers were packed up, and coffee and tea served.
Mom’s pie was notjustdeclared by Jerry, Samantha, and Davie as the best homemade dessert they'devereaten.Jerry said the words the three of them were thinking, “This is the #1, absolute best, most delicious, love-filledMom-Baked PieEVER!”
My folks knew these three wonderful kids who were our guests didn’t have a parental upbringing, and how they’d fended for themselves.
Mom was on a teary, happy cloud nine. Dad couldn’t stop smiling (but I caught him wiping away a tear, too.).
The day was a hit! I felt like doing a jig!
Samantha
Inoticed that the sisters and Mrs. Peterson shared some whispers as my brother, Jerry, and I got ready for the car to arrive.
Leighton got in the car with us. It would drop him home after us. He told us all what the whispers were about.
“My parents are wondering about Christmas. They would love to share some part of it together with the three of you. When do you do your Christmas celebration thing? Ours is only right on Christmas Day.”
