Always Celebrate the Same Day
Gloria found me first at church. She nodded to Puck sitting with buddies down the hall and an iPhone game. “He stayed up till nine last night watching This Old House with Theodore!” Maybe there’s some banister carving or plaster slapping in his future. At this point, I think anything’s up for exploration.
We were a packed line in the chair pews that morning, all eleven together at the same time. On one side of me Puck dangled Sebastian’s old rubber ring chew toy from a rope, banging it against the metal rung of his chair a few times on accident. “IT SOUNDS LIKE A GRANDFATHER CLOCK!” he whisper-shouted, eyes huge with delight. And on the other side, Linnea – to calm the rumbles in her stomach – was tearing off bits of paper from her bulletin. To eat them.
Fortunately for her embarrassing stomach, a luncheon followed; somehow Carrie and I picked the exact same things: pinwheel wraps, meatballs, and cold pasta salad, with lemonade. Francis coaxed Puck into bringing him a fat wedge of cold chocolate pie. And Irish joined friends on grade school plastic chairs in the Sunday School classroom, talking earlier about the “glow party” on Saturday night.
The afternoon’s activities had commenced. Carrie-Bri was wearing a pristine David Freese (minus two tea stains), myself sporting an Adam Wainwright. We don’t wear designers around here; we wear Cardinals. Irish had given Carrie the twenty-dollar Freese jersey, in exchange for what, I wasn’t sure. Except for Dad’s legacy, we’re no football fans.
Besides, we were celebrating Dad’s birthday three days early. Grandma Snicketts in her MIZZOU jacket with parsley for the buns, cherry Valentine’s M&Ms for me, and alphabet cookies for Puck. She joined Mom and the girls talking wedding dresses in the living room consultation circle. El Oso and Puck at Walgreen’s for BC Powder and dominoes. Joe and Francis picked up a battery for the car. I guiltlessly watched April baseball reruns from last spring in the other room. No shame.
Stefanina’s in Dad’s favorite forms: buffalo chicken, bacon, hamburger. And a three-cheese to please. Culver’s ice cream cake. Gifts: MIZZOU running cap, ear buds, cedar tree silhouette oil lamp, national parks DVD collection, and a load of cash, complete with hijacked R.C. Sproul photo Christmas card by Joe, the venerated R.C. sporting Sharpied eye patch and missing tooth. And a pump-up musical version from Grandma. Dad likes his musical cards.
Rose-violet sunset as El Oso drove out for the ordination service of one of his best buds at Covenant PCA. Even I know you don’t schedule an ordination service on Super Bowl Sunday. The other ten sat in a living room huddle in front of the 21-inch or whatever. And Red Hot Chili Peppers. Rose left early so the police wouldn’t pull her over – again – for driving with a burnt out headlight.