The Best-Laid Schemes

Last week, Bud and I were discussing Of Mice and Men. River, of course, asked us to explain what the title means. This resulted in our reading the poem and discussing its meaning.

This week, for Veterans Day, Bud wanted to get up early and bring the kids to watch the sun rise over Ned’s Point Lighthouse. It was to be only River, Eleanor and he, as Jack has been sick. However, when I commenced to getting the older two dressed and ready to go, Jack expressed that he wanted to go, too, so we were all rushing to get out the door in time. In the chaos of dressing and finding coats and drinking water and using the potty, I hear a crash. Jack, trying to be helpful and get his clothes down from the desk in our living room, had accidentally pulled a full mug of coffee to the floor. It splashed everywhere it could, the floor, the walls, under the cabinet, behind the cabinet, inside the cabinet, into the grate under the cabinet. It should be noted that this double set of cabinets is bolted to the wall with large bolts, and electrical cords are carefully fed through its back to store electronics.

What a domino effect this caused. The cabinets had to be removed. New bolts had to be purchased. Then some new power adapters. Then some other things that I could not continue to follow. I think Bud went to Home Depot at least four times.

As Bud started this project, he asked me to walk the kids down the street to watch the sunrise, as he had promised. These are the photos below.

Bud, for his part, spent his entire day, from before sunrise until after the kids were put to bed, problem solving and fixing the morning’s mess. The kids had a nice day. They watched the sunrise over the Mattapoisett River, climbed on a rock wall, and ran in a dewy field. Then they played some make-believe game outside for hours (minus Jack, who became more sick as the day progressed). But my husband spent his day working for his family, taking care of frustrating tasks that, of the five of us, only he could do. His only reward was a Fenway pizza from Nick’s when he had finally completed the job. We are so lucky to have such a selfless and dedicated husband and father.

The best-laid schemes o’ mice an’ men
Gang aft agley,
An’ lea’e us nought but grief an’ pain,
For promis’d joy!

And that’s the way it is sometimes.