New Story

I read a short story yesterday that made me smile. It told of an old woman who had lost her husband after 62 years. During the last decade or so of their marriage they bickered often, usually over petty little things. Her daughter constantly asked them to quit fighting and be kind to one another but to no avail.

About six months after her husband's death, the woman was feeling lonely and confided in her daughter that there was one thing she regretted in her marriage, and that was getting worked up over little things and not offering forgiveness. For example, every day her husband would brush his teeth and splash toothpaste on the mirror. This really aggravated the old woman and she nagged him constantly about his sloppy ways.

The first cleaning day after her husband's death, the old woman washed the toothpaste off the bathroom mirror. However, when she came back the next day there was toothpaste on the mirror again. The same thing happened on the third and fourth day. She realized that all those years she had been accusing her husband of splashing on the mirror it was in fact both of them who were the culprits.

How foolish she had been in letting something so trivial consume such a large part of this woman's thoughts and actions! How much time had she wasted berating her husband instead of spending that time telling him how much she loved and appreciated him, while quietly overlooking his faults? She can never get back that time but I can certainly learn from her mistake and hopefully spend a few extra minutes today overlooking the "toothpaste splatters" in my own life.