A Pile of Shoes and A Bag of Nuts = The Perfect Birthday

This past Sunday, our family came together to celebrate my husband’s 65th birthday. I loved the conglomeration of shoes just inside our garage of all sizes in a mish-mash pile indicating there were a lot of little people in the house. All those grandkids times two, along with their parents means you need to search the mountain of Velcro and laces for every shoe’s mate.

It was a great celebration for my husband. A boatload of grandkids aged 9 and under were smooshed together along the bench seating in our dining room. It was just the best. There was nothing fancy about it, yet the visual of them all gathered together was priceless. My husband and I had a shared glance that said it all; gratitude overflowed. And, we had no spilled milk, if you can believe that.

One of the highlights of our celebration, however, were the gifts for my husband from our children. I mean, what do you buy your 65-year-old dad? My husband neither needed nor wanted anything more than the current chaos in our home, but that didn’t stop our kids from finding the perfect gifts. Our older daughter is planning a breakfast date with her dad. That’s great. Our younger daughter had a framed photo of her kids with her dad. That’s also great. Our second son, however, stole show with his very personal and creative potpourri of hand-picked items found at his neighborhood grocery store.

You all know by now that my husband loves beans. So, imagine if you were him and your son gifted you with a multitude of ready to eat beans in a bag. From inside a very unassuming grocery bag, my son is tossing his dad beans, one bag at a time. “Dad,” he said with exuberance, “Here you go! Happy Birthday!” Flying through the air were various pouches; red beans, Cuban beans, pinto beans, all microwavable and ready to go. I mean, who wouldn’t be absolutely thrilled.

But wait. There was more. My son handed his dad a smaller, snack-sized brown paper bag filled with loose nuts from the bulk section of the grocery store. You could call it trail mix, without the fun of the trail. Whole pecans, macadamias and pistachios (with the shell) all become one alongside pepitas and walnuts. I think it’s fair to say, it was just a free-for-all-chock-full-of-nuts.

“Dad,” our son was so excited. “Just put this bag of nuts in the console of your car. It’s perfect. If you’re hungry, just toss a handful in your mouth.”

I don’t think I can adequately convey how touched my husband was by the collection of culinary delights gifted to him by our son. I mean, who wouldn’t love a bag full of loose nuts? My husband’s collapse into laughter said it all. Certainly, this was a gift my husband didn’t even know he needed, nor dared desired. Yet, our son’s enthusiasm in gift giving made it the perfect present. I can pretty much guarantee this 65th birthday gift will not easily be forgotten. I cant wait to see what’s in store for me next month when I turn 65.  Maybe yogurt covered raisins or white chocolate chips? I can only hope.