This morning while Tommy was getting ready for work I took a brief moment to throw some laundry in the washer, one of those chores as a mother and wife we simply do without thinking. As Tommy was headed out the door, he stopped to give me a quick kiss, and said sweetly, "Thanks for making the magic happen."
The "magic" in this case, is how clean clothes magically appear in his closet. A few years ago, one of our daughters, who remembers which one, while upset we would have her do chores, stated that I, as a work at home mother, simply sat around eating chocolate all day while they were at school, and consequently, to ask her to help clean the house after school was simply uncalled for. To which, Tommy and I laughed, and took turns speaking of magical things that happened in our house, as of course, I didn't perform any of them. Some of the list was food magically appearing either in the pantry, or later cooked at served at the table, toilets becoming clean on their own, errands magically being done without anyone to do them, vegetables appearing out of nowhere suddenly into our garden, and of course, those magic clothes being worn, thrown into the hamper or onto the floor, magically becoming clean, and finding themselves folded and put away without anyone touching them. Truly we live in a magical house.
So, this morning as my husband watched me throw in a load of laundry, he thanked me for the magic. Now, as much as my life revolves around the washer and dryer, sadly, that isn't really what I was thinking about when I sat down to write a quick blog post, but instead I was thinking about how lucky I am to have a husband who notices the "magic" and takes time to say thank you to me. It has now been my job to wash his laundry for just under 19 years. That is quite a few pairs of socks, underwear, pj's, pants, shirts, pillow cases, sheets, etc. Too many to count. I generally do it without even thinking about it, almost as an after thought. And I think most times, he creates more "work" for me without even really thinking about it. But he does go out of his way to try to acknowledge that he appreciates the fact he doesn't have to think about where his clean laundry comes from, and generally (unless I am crazy busy) have to wonder if he will have clean laundry. Such a simple thing, that I believe, adds so much to our marriage.
I think I don't do as well at this. I rarely call him on payday, and thank him for getting up every day, and going to work so "magically" money appears in our account to pay bills with. I rarely thank him for making sure our internet is running correctly so I can work from home. I ask him to run errands for me, or to drive the kids to and from their activities when I can't or don't feel up to it, and don't really consider how it takes him away from something he needs, or wants to do. Now, before I get any "women's lib's" thinking he leaves me to do all the work myself, or raise the kids myself, that is not how it works. Yes, I generally cook. Mainly because I prefer my cooking, and prefer to have dinner (which I generally have been in charge of choosing when we eat) at a time where it doesn't work to wait for him to arrive home. He is more than happy to clean up, or even cook. Even tonight, he realized I have "other plans" and asked if he needed to take care of dinner. To which, I answered, I had it covered but thank you.
To me, his simply "thank you" this morning was just one instance of something he always does that makes me more dedicated to my marriage, and more in love with him. In every successful marriage each person is doing so many things simply to make the marriage succeed. That might be raising the children, going to work, doing laundry, bringing home flowers, going to a movie the other one wants to see, so many things. And the marriage grows, as each one recognizes and shows gratitude for those little things. I know every time my husband takes that time to thank me for the "magic" I feel a bit more thankful for each thing he does, and falls a bit more in love. Maybe that is the real "magic" in our marriage. Maybe it is the small and simple acts of love and service, and then showing love and gratitude for those acts. I do live in a magic house, not due any house elves (not that I would mind having some if anyone has any to share) or chores becoming done without any effort, but because the love my husband shows to me daily makes this a magic place to live!
