You’ve heard all the mother-in-law jokes, all the stories about feuds between mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law. You’ve heard of the mothers who are jealous when their sons marry, and they have to put up with his loving another woman more than her herself. Even the lessons of St. Luke in the Bible talks about daughter-in-law l against mother-in-law.
One of the things that make me happy all the time is that I don’t and can’t fit into any of those categories.
Okay, perhaps one of my children did not make all the right decisions all the time. But wise as he is, he recognized his mistakes, adjusted for them, then made the decision to marry Stacey. Their meeting was a bit unusual, for this New Yorker and New Jerseyan, their courtship a bit more rare, and even their marriage so many years ago was a bit out of the ordinary
Both are smart, determined, thoughtful and so thoughtful of others, they remain the perfect match.
But Stacey is more than that. She’s more than the perfect wife for my son, she’s more than a helpmate and she’s more than the beautiful woman who keeps my son happy, stable, and looking forward to every day because of her.
Because as wonderful as she is for my son, she is every bit that for everyone, from her mother and her mother-in-law, to strangers, people in need, and anyone who comes in contact with her.
There was the Thanksgiving Eve as my son and his wife were coming home from church, the saw a homeless woman on the street. Stacey immediately stopped to talk to her, invited her home, fed her, invited her to use the tub for a hot bath and gave her fresh clothes. The woman thanked her, declined the invitation to stay overnight, then went back on her own to her place among the homeless in town, a big happier, less hungry, better dressed, clean and with a fresh supply of food. Stacey does all that.
There are lots of stories like that. If someone is cruel to an animal, Stacey is there to remind the person, in her own inimitable fashion, what happens to people who are cruel or mean, words spoken loud enough and firm enough to be sure he hears while she stoops down to help the animal. If the person in front of her at the store doesn’t have enough money to pay the bill, it’s Stacey who picks up the tab. If it’s someone with car trouble, it’s Stacey who lifts the hood, fiddles around and makes the repairs for a grateful driver.
The list goes on.
As generous and kind as she is, Stacey is also creative. She’s the one who hunts garbage piles for a broken table or chair, then brings it home to repair and give it new life. If the windowless wall in a room is blank and dull, it’s Stacey who whips out her paint brushes and variety of colors and creates an outdoor scene with a window frame around it, opening the door to the appearance of the outdoors on a sunshine filled day. Only Stacey can take an old tub and make a gorgeous sink of it, or any piece of what appears to be unworkable junk to others into something special and useful.
I always thought I was fortunate enough to have great children, children who have grown up, received their formal education in a variety of ways, served both their fellow man, be it in the military or the hospital and blessed me with the world’s best grandchildren and great grandchildren.
But life doesn’t get any better than having all of that, plus a daughter-in-law named Stacey.
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