Friday, August 6, 2010

Retirement Suits Him

The night before he retired, my mom fell and broke her neck (though we wouldn't discover the break until the day after he retired). Because I was spending so much time at the hospital with Mom, Bill had to take charge of the kids and the house. He began his retirement in a very non-traditional way and never complained for a minute. There was no fanfare - no celebration. He had to take the kids to doctor appointments, travel clinics (where he was introduced to Henry's extreme reaction to needles), parks and beaches. He had to facilitate details for our trip and our move and had to get our family ready for the next phase. He was amazing.

It has been so nice to see him get a chance to relax and regroup on the island. He gets up early in the morning, maybe goes for a run, makes breakfast and settles into island mode. He has been writing, reading, cooking and learning about local traditions, all while continuing to be the glue that holds us together. It is because of his hard work through the years that our family is getting this opportunity and we will forever be grateful. I'm still not sure how I got so lucky!

5 comments:

  1. Although I think this shot captures my "pretty" side, the real shot was the beautiful snappers cooking on the charcoal grill below me.

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  2. You are pretty, for sure!!! Great picture and I am sure the snapper was pretty too. Can't wait for dajo to comment on that one!

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  3. I have to wait for the tearing up to stop before I can refocus.....

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  4. OK, so I can comment before reading what I am sure is a lovely piece about how fabulous Bill is, with which I would agree. However, coming upon this post, I think he looks like an island time drug kingpin. Just sayin'. ;-)

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  5. Well, Anne, we DO need to pay for this trip, you know.

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