My Husband the Hero

I am writing to recommend my husband for Husband of the Year. He is a great guy, that's no mystery. It's rare for him to meet someone he can't talk to or get to laugh. He is great with our kids, even when he feels insecure and even when he needs to mete out consequences.

I'm not nominating him because of his sense of humor, although that is a highlight of him in general. It was the first thing I noticed about him. I guffawed at his jokes from the very beginning; had I known this would encourage him to tell the same jokes for the following 10+ years, I would have tempered my reaction.

I'm not nominating him because of his gift of gab. It's true, though, that he does have that gift. He gets anxious talking in front of groups. His face and neck get flushed and he becomes convinced that he's having a heart attack. (Please note, he feels like he's having a heart attack about 8-10 times a day. The majority of it is anxiety.) His physical reaction to public speaking notwithstanding, he is wonderful at conveying his ideas with warmth, humor, and compassion. I have saved various cards from flowers and gifts because I can't believe he wrote them.

I'm not nominating him because he is a great son and brother. His sister, Jenny, is 7 years younger than he. She once wrote an essay in school about how he was her hero. She stood up in our wedding, has cut our hair numerous times (she's a hairdresser), always shows up when one of us in the hospital and runs at least 3 races a month. He has been equally loyal to her. He gave her away at her wedding, is godfather to his niece, Ashley, and does everything in his power to make it to her house several times a year. His mom is smitten with him, to be sure. I went to a birthday party for him once and she refused to eat until he arrived. She's been in the hospital a few times and he's rearranged his schedule to visit her and support his sister.

I'm not nominating him because he loves animals. I will say, though, that although it took some convincing for him to adopt our dogs, he became a big softie once they got home. The first night the dogs were home, he heard Scout crying in the kitchen of our condo. At the time, we were living in a 2-bedroom condo. We were sleeping in a queen-sized bed. I lay there, trying to sleep, when he said to me; "she sounds so sad!" I told him that if he went to get her, if he brought her into our bed, it would be like that for all of time. We now sleep in a king-sized bed.

I'm not nominating him because of his outdoorsman skills. He honestly has none, so this one is completely true. We were fishing once off of the pier behind Jenny's cabin. I don't mind fishing, and I think he decided to try it because I was doing it. There were catalpa worms in the trees overhanging the pier. Bill (my brother-in-law), Ashley and I all grabbed some to bait our hooks. I took some time to make sure the catalpa worm concealed the hook. When I turned around to check on Brian, he had the worm in one hand and the fishing hook in the other. It seemed like he was trying to convince the worm to impale himself. We've not been fishing since.

I'm not nominating him because he's fearless. This is another one where there's a true lack of skill. He's squeamish about blood, hates heights (even when he sees them in movies) and generally doesn't like to be involved if there's pain or suffering. A few years ago, a robin built a nest above the light on our front porch. We watched as the robin built the nest, laid eggs and cared for her young. I'm not sure where I was, but he decided to take the kids around the front of the house. He wanted to show them what the nest looked like.

The account that follows has changed several times. He is sure that the robin swooped down on him. Full of fear, he pushed the kids out of the way in an attempt to flee. I will say that as he's told the story, the size of the bird has gotten progressively bigger. It's now an albatross.

I'm nominating him because today I have a horrible stomach bug. I'm not sure why or how I contracted it, but I woke up at 7 AM and have been sick non-stop ever since. The kids, to their credit, have been incredibly understanding. I had hoped to take them either to the library or local petting zoo, but in light of my dependence on modern plumbing, decided against both. I sent a few texts to Brian, letting him know of my plight. Under his own steam, he asked if he should come home.

Typically, there are about five days a month where I want him to stay home. I don't ask him five times a month, but I secretly yearn for him to come home and act as a buffer. The past few years, his time off has been eaten up with hospitalizations and illness (his and Jeremy's). I know he covets the idea of taking a day off just to vegitate, even though that rarely ends up happening. This morning, while I was busy cursing gravity and praising the inventor of the indoor toilet, I had that moment. I wanted him to be home. I didn't want to have to deal with the kids on my own.

So when he asked, I accepted his offer to come home early. And that's why I'm nominating him. It takes a pretty special guy to realize his wife needs help. It takes an even more special guy to step out of himself and his daily activity to help his wife. Don't worry, this is going to be forwarded to the nominating committee. He's a shoe-in.