Mending Fences

It has certainly been an eventful couple of days.

Wednesday morning, I read a news article about a stable fire that resulted in the death of four horses. As the fire happened in the area of the city where Tess* boards her horse, I dashed off a text message to her to make sure that her horse was OK. Turns out that he was, and I got a bonus invite to join her to see him. So we go down, yada yada, and then as we are leaving, Tess manages to run the car into a chain-link fence. It was weird. I was watching it happen, and was amazed at how when she should have braked, she stepped on the accelerator. I was also empathetic, for who among us hasn’t had a similar experience? Driving is complicated, and sometimes you screw up.

Anyway, with the shock of the event still very fresh, Tess pulls the car out from under the fence and then straightens it out on the road…just in time for one of the people at the house to run out and accuse her of trying to run away. So I stand with Tess in an attempt to keep the situation calm with the head of the house now out and in a bit of a snit. I was starting to try to negotiate a private settlement when we’re told that the police are on their way. Then Scarlet, who was also in the car, enters into the discussion. Let’s just say that I was relieved when the police showed up at almost that instant and had us get back in the car while they talked to the fence owners.

Long story not-as-long, an agreement was brokered that we fix the fence and all will be fine. With that accomplished, Tess dropped off her sister and other passengers, and then we trekked on over to Lowes to pick up fence repair items. As I was pulling into the parking lot, I get a call from Susie G. that essentially amounted to confirming that Sunday had been my last day working at the shop. Oh joy. Now I’m again unemployed.

Thursday comes and Tess and I go out to fix the fence. I can’t help feeling tickled that we were LITERALLY mending fences. Considering I have no previous first-hand experience doing it, I think we did OK. It didn’t take long (under an hour), and the fence looked to be in repaired shape. Not like new…that wasn’t the agreement, but it’s standing and stronger than it was before (I wouldn’t want to be the car that hits it the next time — there will be real damage then).

So, I’m now sitting here fatigued. Not only from the fence work and the other errands I had to tackle today, but also from the stress of the week now released. And I’m content. I’m content that I got to spend time with Tess, which I haven’t gotten to do in a while. As there is thought being given about whether she might move to a land far far away to be with her boyfriend, or not, I especially treasure the fact that we got to talk and have a few laughs…and a little adventure that will always be part of our shared experience.

It’s times like these that I find myself in a bit of a quandry. While my choice not to have children has been the right one for me, I can’t help but acknowledge that if I had a daughter (or daughters) like Tess and her sisters, I would have thought the stores of Croesus were insufficient to equal the love and happiness I gave, held, and was given. Even so, now, I feel like I’m a lottery winner every time I’m with them. These past couple of days give me confirmation of how lucky a man I am that this family of women lets me love them.