My phone rang last night around 10:30 PM. I knew it had to be one of the kids. I tried calling my daughter about an hour earlier but didn’t get an answer. On the other end of the line was my daughter’s frantic voice, “MOM! We just had an earthquake!”Oh dear, my imagination took off in a devastating direction. Are you ok? Is David ok? Yes, and yes. After getting all of the logistics out of the way, (it was a 5.0, they were nearly at the epicenter, it originated 8.4 miles below the earth’s surface, people were frantically running out of their apartment building and into the courtyard) my daughter finally got to the good stuff.
She was in the shower stark naked with shampoo on her hair when she heard the rumbling noise of the earth cracking all around her and then she felt the trembling of her entire apartment building. She screamed. Petrified, she kept screaming and jumped out of the shower. David, her husband, who was sitting quietly in the living room, heard her screams and here is where it starts to get funny. He also hears a rumbling noise, but being from the Midwest and having spent a good deal of his life around the Chicago area, he doesn’t put two and two together to come up with an earthquake. He hears his wife screaming and hears the rumbling noise and is sure an intruder is running up the staircase to get them. With his eyes on the front door of their apartment, he readies himself in fight mode.
My daughter tells me she wrapped herself up in a towel, hair still sudsy and made her way out to their living room. There, she sees her husband, feet spread in a fighting stance and arms spread wide waiting for whoever he thinks is out there to come crashing through their door. By this time, of course, she has finally stopped screaming and is now laughing hysterically at the sight of her husband ready to protect her. He spies her staring at him in laughter and realizes his mistake, “I heard you screaming and I didn’t want anyone to hurt you, Paige.”
I love this man! I love that his first thought was to protect my daughter. I love the picture in my mind’s eye of him ready to take on the world for her. I know he could do it too. This is a man who exercises his fingers (I kid you not!). This is a man who built a rock climbing apparatus in his dorm room at the University of Illinois. This is a man whose abs gave me pause the first time I hugged him when he was dating my daughter. Brains and brawn! Thank you, David, for loving my little girl!
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Beth Mann
Hayley Rose
MarianneSp
Dianne Schuch - Lindsey
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J. P. Major
Salon.com
Comments
--rated-- Welcome back to the posting thingy.
Rated
I can identify with his ignorance of earthquakes, though. We actually had a minor one when I was still living in Cleveland. Although it was powerful enough to be heard and felt on the third floor of my building, I assumed that it was a big truck down on the street.
Where are all the good men these days??
All taken :(
I'm here in San Diego I didn't feel a thing until a friend called me from LA.
It looks like your daughter is in wonderful hands!! :)
--rated--
Hugs, Red.
Thanks to all of you for your well wishes, I am so glad they are safe and sound also. It is a blessing.
LuisG, San Diego is beautiful. My oldest son was married at the Del Coronado. Beautiful there!
Mothership, you are bringing back the days of spreads (could anyone else possibly know what these are?) and gym uniforms! AAAH!
RedStocking Grandma, thanks so much! It is good to be back. Life jumped up and bit me in the ass. There is much to learn from caring for a parent.
Michael, I so agree! I still love it when a man opens a door for me. I’ve taught my son to do the same. There is a bit of magic in it!
Living on the San Andreas Fault (well close) as I do, I always think about something like this when I get into the shower--what if?
Your son-in-law is a definite keeper. =o) (And very cute.)
Rated
and i'm relieved to read about other people who've suffered an earthquake in the shower. thankfully, ours was smaller, but i wear glasses, and it's REALLY disorienting to try and figure out if/why the blinds are moving when you're home alone and blind as a bat.
Judy, I want one of them too!!
So, everyone in Cali - be safe!!
Rated for great son-in-law.
Rated for great son-in-law.
All earthquakes occur when one is naked. It is a law.
This winter I had a friend of my one son's who had just graduated from college staying here - I gave him a great deal on the rent - but he really turned out to be a dick. He was only concerned about himself and certainly not willing to do anything to help out or protect me and my youngest son who live alone. I gave him several tests over the three months he was here (without his knowledge of course) The final one came when we found a live mouse in the dishwasher. Now I find mice from time to time and have gotten used to dealing with them. But I wanted to see if he could rise to the challenge of getting the mouse for me. He didn't. He wouldn't touch it and couldn't figure out how to trap it and he gave up.
All this babble is just to say that chivalry is a great virture and one that's lost on today's young men. It doesn't mean we're not strong women if we value this, which I think has been an "out" for men for the last 20 years or so.
So kudos to your daughter for making a great choice. And to his parents for raising him well. I hope their marriage lasts forever!