...I'm okay with being REALITY-based.




Monday, July 28, 2003
      ( 8:44 AM )
 
Thanks For the Laughs - and the Example

It is very sad to see the news this morning of Bob Hope's death. In all the comments and eulogies that will be written of him today and this week, he will be lauded for his ability to entertain and for his dedication to the troops of this country, especially during wartime. But what really struck me as I listened to an overview of his life on NPR this morning was the final statement: he died surrounded by family and friends...he was married to his wife Delores for 69 years. Wow. I don't know anyone who has been married that long, even amongst all the friends of my Grams. I just celebrated my 4th anniversary with my husband last week, and thinking about 70 years boggles my mind. No matter what may have happened between them, no matter what struggles the marriage might have had, doesn't it speak volumes that they stayed together throughout it all? That means that they were true partners, true friends. You couldn't live with someone that long and not be. It's the most enduring legacy of a man to leave behind him 70 years of partnership with a woman who he admitted often was his strength and backbone through it all. I can't imagine the kind of loss one must feel when your partner of so many decades is gone.

It just left me with a good feeling - that someone, no matter who he was to the world, stayed with and was committed to one person for 70% of his entire life. That truly is worth lauding.

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