Dysfunctional Love

See that man in the center of the picture? Yeah the only one not looking at the crowd like every one else. With the cane and 'star wars' boot on. Yeah....that's the one.

Well that is my Dear Hubby on the 4th of July lining up to be honored as a Veteran. His foot is healing up from surgery (even though he already re broke his lil toe). And he is the dysfunctional love of my life.

Today I thought I would share how we got together. I thought it would be a great addition to the "Chicken Soup for the Soul" book "All in the Family" which is the stories of our funny, quirky, lovable and dysfunctional families. I adore these books with their short stories that tug right at my heart and make me laugh at the same time. And this one in particular has had me in stitches. You ought to read about how the father baked MARIJUANA into the stuffing. Oh my! That turned some people 'on'. Of course we could also do like one family and go to the family reunion...you know across the state to get there. Only to find out your with the wrong family. Gosh I think I am related to these people. Same for you? I did relate to the story in there of a mentally ill woman and her worries, more so thinking of how some things look to our family when they seem so logical to us.

But I degress, so back to my Dear Hubby and how we met. Several years ago while I married to my College Girls dad, I traveled to be with my mother. Her cousin had passed and I was worried about how she was going to take it. Grandma does not do well when she looses those she loves. So after arriving and going to the funeral with her we followed the crowd to the local bingo hall where the family meal was taking place. My great uncle was there (he was in his late 80's then) and I thought I would help him get his meal. It is so hard to use a walker and carry a plate at the same time. Also he is a great flirt and story teller, so what a time to share with him. After sitting I noticed another younger man and elderly woman getting their food. But, the woman was helping the younger man get his food. He was quite thin and was using a cane to move, seeming very weak. But he had a great smile all the way up to his eyes. More so was a beautiful voice. (I love voices!) I hoped they would sit close so I could continue to hear him speak. And luck would have it that the did. (Of course we was the closest table to the food too.)

Well my great uncle drew them into conversation and I enjoyed the meal quite forgetting the occasion we were all there for. Then it came to an end and we had to return back to my mom's cafe. I kept thinking of this man and his voice. I really loved listening to him. I asked my mom if it was to forward (remember I was married at this time) to ask him to coffee and continue the visit. She said it was ok in her opinion. So she looked up his number and I called him. He was not in but I gathered my nerve and called again later much to my delight. I asked him to coffee but he turned me down. Instead he asked me to join his family (sister and all) at the local fire work show that night (yes in July!). So I went along to the community event.

We talked and talked so much that everyone moved away from us. Loud I guess. After the fireworks we sat in the parking lot and continued to talk. His family left him there after asking for me to return him home later. Finally we headed out to the lake where they lived. Arriving quite late we decided to sit at the lake and continue our conversation for just a lil bit longer. I told you I loved his voice. Well we did talk, talk, talk, and talk.....all the way til the sun was coming up over the lake. You can say the conversation just took over. Needless to say we seemed to have quite a bit in common.

Well 8 years later we still talk late into the night. And every year we return to the same fireworks show to think of that first night we met. He had taken me to see fireworks then and continues to show them to me on a regular basis.

So where did you meet your darling? I bet not at a family funeral.

DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy of this book to facilitate this review. No other compensation was provided.