Slice of Life March Challenge. No. 16.

Part I.

Have you ever shopped for four look-alike dress shirts in four different sizes, the smallest being 12-18 month size?  Oh, I must add that they must be on reduced pricing ’cause who wants to pay full price on children’s clothes that they grow out of so fast and wear so little? Furthermore, who with four little boys has room in the budget for anything that isn’t on sale?

• Well, first you have to find a store that carries boys’ dress shirts.
• Then, that store has to be having a sale on dress clothes. Not usually the case when it’s not Christmas or Easter.
• Then, they have to have a variety of sizes. Not usually the case on sale racks.
• And when you find the garment that has a variety of sizes, it has to be a color, pattern, and style that you’d want to put on your boys. Again, not usually the case on sale racks.

So as the cashier rang up the sale and I picked up the bag containing four look-alike dress shirts in four different sizes that will look great on four little boys, I was rejoicing (#OLW17) because it is nothing short of a MIRACLE!

Part II.

Now, the tale is not over.
Once purchased, you must still take the shirts home and try them on four little boys ’cause only a crazy person would have had the four little boys with them in the store for the fitting!  This I thought would be the BIG moment because if we didn’t estimate correctly and one doesn’t fit, then all four have to be returned. And I don’t know which I would hate worst–returning the stuff or beginning the search again.

But I discovered that making sure the fit is right on all four shirts is not the real reason this is the BIG moment. The real reason is we must convince all four boys that they want to wear this shirt. Sometimes that takes the maneuverings of a skilled politician, sometimes the supremacy of a QUEEN.

Part III.

Then comes the easy part, for which I volunteered since my daughter had managed the politician and queen part quite well. The easy part? Cutting tags and stray threads, laundering and pressing for that crisp, fresh look, and putting them on hangers–the work of a skilled LAUNDRESS.

My part finished, I stood there looking at the shirts hanging so neatly in a row and snapped a picture for memory.

Epilogue.

When my daughter and I look at the family pictures that were candidly taken during the wedding and reception and we see four sweet little brothers dressed in look-alike shirts, we remember a certain Friday afternoon and smile a knowing smile that no one else understands.

Thank you, Two Writing Teachers, for hosting
2017 Slice of Life Story Challenge