Want to know my first reaction when I saw this picture? Sorry Kevin’s, but I giggled…
I can hear Daddy’s voice like it was yesterday. “Now Kate” he’d say with a half smirk. He’d furrow his eyebrows, tilt his head back slightly and stand with his weight on one leg, hands halfway in his front pockets, elbows wide. It was actually a question. He wanted to know why I was doing whatever I was doing. He wanted the inside story. It always made me giggle because my sisters and I seemed to perplex Daddy with girly things like ruffly hunting clothes most of his days. He never did fully understand, but he did try.
I used to love to watch a hunting guide size Daddy up, especially as he aged. He got stiffer and slower. His hearing wasn’t as sharp. Maybe his memory wasn’t either. But name the target – elk at 400 yards, antelope on the run, covey of quail – and he would take it on the first shot. Every time followed by a wink. He knew his old body and mild demeanor had been underestimated. That surprised look on a guide’s face never got old and it always reminded me that things and people are rarely as they seem. Daddy was good at spending his energy looking beyond facades and “figuring”, to use his word, the insides of situations and people. He liked knowing how things worked. He liked knowing how and why a person ended up in their current life situation. And he really enjoyed it when he thought he could make any of the inside parts of people or things better.
Wouldn’t we all be much happier and more productive if we saw less of the outsides and more of the insides in this world? If we replaced comparison with genuine interest? If we saw the ruffles only on our way to seeing and appreciating much more?
Only as a favor to you, I guess I could wear this vest. You know, just to help prompt this new way of thinking. For the good of humanity! It’ll be a struggle, but I’ll do it for you. 😉
By: Kate Lewis
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