Blog Challenge – My theme throughout this will be the quotations I love and what they mean to me.
Our anniversary was June 29, 2016, I’ll use the quotation I added to our Facebook Post that day.
“We may not have it all together, but together we have it all”
Jerry took my breath away this particular Christmas when his gift was this small, beautifully and professionally wrapped gift. Inside, surrounded by a very ornate a gold frame were the words drawn in calligraphy, “We may not have it all together, but together we have it all.”
I was stunned, tears welled up in my eyes, and my insides were trembling. We were at my sister’s house, the room was full of people, I didn’t want anyone to see me so seemingly out of control.
Jerry has always been a great gift giver. Thoughtful but never a mind reader. I could have dropped a hundred hints about what I thought would be a great gift for me and he most likely would never pick it up. I never expected a gift like this.
The year was 2000 and it was very different from previous holidays. We were the “talk of our family, friends , colleagues and associates. We retired early. We just moved out of our home of 20 years in Clinton NJ and to the foreign country of Penn State University, State College, Pennsylvania.
Jerry was taking a second degree in Astro Physics. I was alone. I knew not a soul and Jerry had his nose in books. He was working hard studying which is what you are supposed to do when you retire and go back to school. I was searching.
The past 6 months from moving to the holidays, had been tough for me. I had spent most of my time exploring the surrounding area. State College is like an island surrounded by farms, it instead of water. Five minutes out of town and you are in the country. Centrally located, it is 3 hours east to Allentown, and 3 hours west of Pittsburgh.
I was looking to find a friend and most importantly looking to find myself. When we moved I had tossed out my identity, that of a well-known, somewhat influential, business woman in the community and industry. More I was feeling lonely, abandoned and fearful. Not that I wanted anyone to know that, but secretly I was wondering “What did we do?” and “What am I doing here?” I was rattled by the results of our decision. I was wondering if we were together at all. He was spending most of his time studying in school and I was spending most of my time alone, my treasured day timer, planner had no entries. Together was not a word I would have used to describe us that particular holiday season.
This treasure, this beautiful, hand drawn and painted, framed quotation, an exquisitely wrapped gift just for me, felt like Jerry had just grabbed me as I was walking by and said ” I need you in my life, stay. Together, we can do this.” He then gave me the biggest, best hug of all time.