Dont often do this but thought to share a personal story about Brad and I meeting a stranger named Richard. September 2013 Meeting Richard Brad and I were having one of those mornings where nothing was going right. Our communication was off and so was our spirits. We had been driving in a car all morning. It was just one of those mornings that sometimes you have and can’t quite trace back and pinpoint how the mood shifted. We were in the middle of nowhere in Charlotte and in an area that I didnt know much about. We drove around looking for a place to eat. It was noon and traffic was bad. Brad would suggest one place and I would automatically say no. I would suggest another place and he would shake his head. This went on for 10 minutes. Our hunger probably added about 8 minutes towards making our decision. We ended up at Wendys. We sat down inside with our food which helped lift our moods. In the middle of Wendys, our conversation turned into a serious one. We spoke about everything that was on our minds. At the time Brad’s dad was very sick (he is doing better now) which was weighing heavily on both our minds. The conversation turned into a feel good positive one. Walking out our spirits were happier even though thoughts of our life were swirling in both our minds. Would Dad be okay? Where would we be in two years? Where would Brad’s business be? Out of nowhere, a white van pulled up and stopped directly in front of us. A white-haired man with bright blue eyes peered down at us. He leaned out of his window with his tan arm resting comfortably on the side window grinning, Are you guys being good or being bad? Let me guess she’s being bad.” Brad started chuckling at the mans question and looked at me, I quickly responded, Being good. A native Charlottean, Richard met his wife and married her on July 28, 1956. At the time, they did not have much and lived out in West Charlotte to be near her family. His wife was determined to work in the city and got herself a job downtown. She wanted to be a city slicker, Richard recalled beaming with admiration over his wifes determination. Downtown Charlotte streets were tough to maneuver but she learned it. She went downtown and walked the streets until she learned how to navigate through there by herself. She refused to ask even from me for help and ended up working downtown for several years, He paused with a twinkle in his eyes continuing,She was my city slicker. We have been married for 57 years. Brad and I stared at this stranger talking to us. We looked at each other and were thinking, We did not know this man. Why was he sharing this story with us out of the blue? He looked at Brad and nodded towards me and said,“God gave us a wife to take care. Woman was made in mans likeness and no one will ever like me without her. My wife is my everything and I am hers. Stick together.” Richard continued to share more of his story, Life was difficult. We married and moved to a tiny house way out in the country. It had an outhouse. My wife and I were very different. I grew up in the city and she was from the country. For the first ten years, life was hard. We lived in a poor part of town. I know it was hard for her. We stuck together. His eyes were misty telling us their story. The empathy that this man exuded for his wife and family really touched both of us — in a way I cannot describe. Brad describes the encounter such as this,”..very surreal — the timing and randomness of this man appearing from nowhere and refresh pertinence and relevance of what he was saying just fit our situation.” Now, Richard did not look like a man who spent his spare time crying. His perfectly manicured white wavy hair with curled wispy sideburns framed his face. His gold wired framed glasses perched on his nose moved with every word he spoke.Richard turned his head with a smile again saying, “No one will ever like me without my wife. Richard wore a neatly pressed blue shirt with a crisp collar with the sleeves rolled up. Richard owns his own company making custom crawl space doors with several sub-contractors that work under him. He is semi-retired but still likes to go out in the field more than into the office. His wife and him have one daughter who now lives in New York City. Every summer, her family visits them at the same house that she grew up in. In between visits, Richards shares that he still sings to his daughter on the phone. He even gave us a sampling of his singing voice. As he sang, the sun hit his gold watch on his wrist reflecting specks of light back on his glasses. He was a handsome and charismatic man. Richard took my hand and held it for a moment. It was time for him to leave. He stared at both Brad and I before leaving, “There is not a day that goes by I don’t hug my wife and tell her I love you. Now you take care of each other.” Just like that, Richard drove away leaving Brad and I standing in the middle of a Wendy’s parking lot somewhere in Charlotte. Even though they could afford it, Richard and his wife never left their first home out in the country. It is not so poor — that part of town.
Posted on: Thu, 24 Oct 2013 03:39:18 +0000
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