The Chattering Crow: Tom's Birthday

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Tom's Birthday

Tom turned 75 on Tuesday. Children and grandchildren gathered in the evening bringing love notes and presents. We arm wrestled under Elliot's directions. Harrison, Maxwell and Louis gathered to work on the 1000-piece puzzle on the dining room table and made tremendous headway. Some played with yo-yos and all of us chattered and laughed.

Earlier in the day, Tom insisted that his classes sing Happy Birthday to him. They guessed that he was in his sixties. Ha!

And the night before, he went and got a full body massage, which he LOVED. If Tom was an animal, he would be a Llewelyn Setter. He loves being patted and rubbed. A massage was a perfect present.

I was dating Tom on his 24th birthday. I must have given him something, but I can't think of what it was. So many birthdays past have floated away like helium balloons.

The future is now. Happy Birthday, Tom.

3 comments:

AnonymousOctober 23, 2014 at 3:49 PM
Happy Birthday, Tom!
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Bailie @ The Hemborg WifeOctober 24, 2014 at 1:54 AM
Happy Birthday to Tom!
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twebsterarmstrongOctober 24, 2014 at 5:24 PM
I love this post. Happy birthdays are the best. Thank you for sharing your family.
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You can quote me:

"The beautiful is as useful as the useful." Victor Hugo
"I don't want the damned sportsmanship award."
"Jesus glows in the dark like my pajama tops" George Plummer, age 4
"Our parents are crazy as hell." Sam Plummer, 2016
"Grandma, your hands are old." Sally Plummer, age 3.
"Expect the end of the world. Laugh. Laughter is immeasurable. Be joyful though you have considered all the facts." Wendell Berry
"Sitting is the new smoking is the new bullshit." Tom Plummer, 2014
"Never move an old tree." Dutch saying.
"I am universally offensive." Dede Plummer, 2014
"I don't want to see any movie with the word 'guys" in the title." Tom Plummer, 2013.
"Please bless Grandma. And Grandpa. That they can have a nice time. In their apartment." Louis Plummer, age 4.
“Don’t be afraid to be confused. Try to remain permanently confused. Anything is possible. Stay open, forever, so open it hurts, and then open up some more, until the day you die, world without end, amen.” George Saunders
"Hello, my name is Tom, and I'll be your spouse this evening." Tom Plummer, 2012
Me: " Jesus knows EVERYTHING." Hank (10), "Yeah? How many fingers am I holding up?"
"In my end is my beginning." T.S. Eliot
"Nothing has prepared her for the wide, grey simplicity of sadness and for the knowledge that this is what the rest of her life will be like." Carol Shields
"My life has been a fog, but the only light, the only clarity-- has come from the simplicity of putting permanent ink on paper." Rian Plummer, age 17.
"When I die I'm leaving my body to science fiction." Steven Wright
"Does anybody need to go poopies?" Louis Plummer, age 3
"I grew up in the wide and spacious building." Charles Plummer, 2011
"Pride is a such a useless handicap." Christina Putney
"You are not too old and it is not too late to dive into your increasing depths where life calmly gives out it's own secret" — Rainer Maria Rilke
"Don't retire; retread your tires." Lucy Jarvis
"Grandma is never boring." Mira Plummer, age 8
"Not all who wander are lost." J.R.R. Tolkien
"The only way to get what you really want is to let go of what you don't want." Iyanla Vanzant
"Being in your body is a good place to be." Beatrix Ost
"I'm the world's oldest teenager." Iris Apfel, age 89