Restroom Revelations

Everybody wears them, to a degree.   And they are plural.   That is what is fascinating about people. Getting to see behind the masks. It's a gift that many don't appreciate. Some people are more open than others and others wear so many masks it appears they are open, when in fact, they are the most closed books you'll ever meet. It's all about trust.  Those that appear to be maskless are probably the ones that trust the least and have the most masks of all. Or I could be full of shit.  That happens too. When someone reveals something to you, though, that is a gift.  Don't take gifts for granted.  They are for treasuring.  I hope that I show those that have given me those gifts, that they are treasured.  I always worry about that.

It was a hot summer night and a group of us had met at this little bar that was in a strip mall that are all too frequent in Virginia Beach. This one was where the bar scene in Navy Seals was filmed.  We had all congregated there as a group after work. We drank beer and played pool for awhile and introductions were made to those of us who didn't know everyone. I found myself sitting next to the most beautiful man I had ever laid eyes on.  Blond hair and green eyes, a most glorious combination. I honestly cannot remember what we talked about, but I do remember that face, and those eyes.  I just leaned on the bar and stared.  He was a fascinating conversationalist, don't get me wrong, but I was just enamored at the time. Eventually, the evening came to a close, as all evenings must and he walked me out to my car. As we were saying our goodbyes, he said to me..."I am going to kiss you now."  Seven words made my knees weak. And kiss me he did.  He...

I adopted a new kid last week.  This one is a girl. She makes number seventeen, besides the step kids. I thought this is a thing that all people did.  I do it because it was done for me.  You have those friends growing up that you call sibs from another crib, sister from another mister, or brother from another mother. Most of these kids come from either broken homes or dysfunctional families.  What it means is that I love them unconditionally.  If they need to talk to me about anything at all, I am available, just as if they were my own children. I have taken some of them to the hospital and bailed some out of jail.  I've hugged them when they were sad and chewed their asses out when they were wrong. I've helped them with homework, fed them, and snuggled their babies, too. I've cheered for them, mourned with them, drank beer with some of them. Most of all, I just loved them. They all had their stories.  They all needed just one person t...