Over the years, I have sat through many
kinds of events. Mainly man related events. I have sat through so many Ranch
rodeos that there is no way I could count them. I have sat through the WRCA up
in Amarillo with a child laying across my lap running a fever. And the other
three little darlings either mad, sad, hungry thirsty, or needing the bathroom.
Now! I have had kids that were well when we left home. After being exposed to
people and germs and bad food throw up in the back seat on the way home. I have
potty trained small children while sitting at these events. The question “Do
you need to go potty,” being meet with a “no”, all the while a puddle forms
around their feet. The dry clothes are
in a pickup on the back side of a parking lot. Which may or may not be muddy So
I find myself navigating through mud and horse manure while pushing a stroller
with one hand and dragging the wet, now wailing child with the other.
Now there are grandchildren. I love my
grandchildren I do. I love them enough to take them to a monster truck rally in
Lubbock. I do not like monster truck rally’s. I do not like taking small
children to monster truck rally’s. It will not happen again. It was an event so
traumatic that I will not speak of it.Recently my Cowboy wanted to go to a
leather/ boot and saddle making expo in Wichita Falls. We had two of the grands.
He promised we would not stay long and he would be ever so helpful. With much trepidation,
I agreed. The first 10 minutes were awesome. They were in their strollers and
just being the cutest most amazing little grandchildren ever. People smiled at
them and commented how nicely behaved they were. I just beamed. I was so
overjoyed that I told hubby to just go on. Look and enjoy yourself. I have got
this. It went south in a hurry. The oldest spied a candy bowl sitting on a
vender table. They don’t get a lot of candy at home. I was warned about candy.
But what would one little piece of candy for each of them hurt? As soon as that
first bit of sugar hit their little systems it was like they had ingested crack
cocaine. Eyes glazed over, drool was running down their chins. I swear they
were twitching. And then I saw at every table there was a candy bowl. It was a
big show. There were lots of tables. And the people! My grands were just so
precious and adorable that the people from those tables were giving them
handfuls of candy! They could unwrap it and have it in their mouths before I
could stop them. They were poking it in their pockets. Hiding it in the seat of
the strollers. Twenty minutes in, my eyes were glazed over and I am not real
sure, but I might have possibly been drooling and twitching as well. By that time,
they had discovered they were Houdini and unstrapped themselves from the
stroller and were running from table to table grabbing what they could. I
looked around in desperation, where was their Pappy! I did not have this!
I decided it was time to go outside.
Get them away from temptation. They did not want to go outside. There was no
candy outside. There were not cute and precious anymore. They were crazed
little people on a sugar high! The same people that only moments ago, had cooed
and admired them were now staring as I drug one by the hood of his jacket as he
screamed, “Pappy help me!” Don’t waste your breath kid, Pappy has left the
building. The other little cherub was riding on my hip screaming in my ear.
Thrashing and when not screaming at the top of her lungs holding her breath
till her lips turned blue. I tried to be dignified as I marched out. I heard
snickers and chuckles and in the back ground one “bless your heart.”
We finally
arrived outside. I put the screamer down to catch my breath and she darted like
a gazelle down the sidewalk headed toward the parking lot. I got her gathered
up and looked back to make sure the other one was still where I left him. He
was standing in front of the fountain. Apparently, the sound of rushing water
was more then he could handle because he was “watering” the plants around the
fountain. If you know what I mean. An elderly gentleman and his wife just
happened to be walking by as I was hollering at him to pull his pants up! The
gentleman just laughed and said “little boys will be little boys”, and his wife
looked at me with pity and said, “bless your heart. “After patting them down
for contraband candy, I spent the rest of the afternoon in the pickup listening
to Hank the Cow dog. Hiccupping children. And much complaining about stomach
aches. My Cowboy finally came loping
across the parking lot with all his purchases in his hands. Eyes gleaming like
a kid at Christmas. And asked me, “were they good?” I will not say any more
about that experience. Or the ride home. It is best left in the past.
The guilt of that ordeal must have weighed
heavily on my cowboy’s heart. Of course, I never mentioned it again. Let dead
dogs lie and all that jazz. But he is a sensitive soul. So, when I came home
with a flyer about the production of the Phantom of the Opera in Lubbock and
mentioned that I would like to go, he stopped what he was doing and immediately
ordered the tickets. Ok. The truth. I didn’t get much of a response to my idea.
Other than a look. And he didn’t order the tickets. The flyer sat on the table
for about 6 weeks. I finally tossed it. One day he came in and sat down at the
computer. This is unusual behavior. So,
I asked him what he was doing. He said, “well if you want to go to that singing
thing we need tickets.” I was
speechless. I wondered if I was dreaming or maybe had a stroke of some sort.
But no! He was ordering tickets and taking me to the opera!
The night arrived. We dressed up in our
Sunday best and headed to Lubbock. We ate a wonderful steak at the Double
Nickle Steakhouse. If you have never eaten there I give it a 5-star rating.
Amazing. And feeding a man a big steak before he must endure something I am
sure he never in his life thought he would have to endure is only right.
We arrived at the show and took our
seats. It was a full house. The lights went down and the show began. As soon as
it started I glanced at my Cowboy. No facial expression. None. Every so often I
would steal a glance. Nothing. After one of the more intense leaping and
dancing scenes I ask him what he thought? “Interesting”. That was it. Interesting. The intermission came. He looked at me and
asked, “why do they sing all the sentences?” “Because that’s what they do in
Opera” I replied. Like I know, this was as new to me as it was to him. Other than
UIL plays in high school and one on college I had never been to a live
production either. But one of us had to know what was going on. So, I faked it.
Then he asked, “are they singing in English?” I admit I was a little stumped on
that one. But yes, yes, they are singing in English. At least I was fairly certain
it was English. I asked him once more what he thought. “It is interesting.”
That was all I was going to get.
When it was all said, and done we had a
wonderful time. It was fun to do something different and my Cowboy admitted
that he guessed a little culture would not hurt him every so often. And I am
glad to hear him say that because in August they are doing Seven Brides for
Seven Brothers!
God Bless
and Happy Trails
MB
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