I happen to be blessed with a well-seasoned man. Like a great cast iron frying pan passed down from grandmaw, he is durable, solid and can be counted on throughout the years. Best of all, he turns loose of stuff that could make marriage sticky.
For instance, when his wife tries a new cake recipe and it falls to pieces as she dumps it from the pan he says, “Mmmm… that sure smells good. Can I have a chunk while it’s still warm?”
When she jerks one outfit on after another trying to get dressed for church then stands in front of the mirror wishing she were 20 pounds lighter… well, he is wise enough to stay out of the way of that. In fact he’ll pour himself another cup of coffee and wait in the other room without reminding her of the time.
When finally she emerges, he does not comment that she is dressed in the same thing she always wears. In fact, he may be seasoned enough to say, “Your hair looks nice.”
A well-seasoned man can also discern when she is having a hot-flash from Gehenna. Wisely he will notice that she is frantically waving a magazine hoping to stir a breeze; that plus the fact that her reading glasses are fogging up. Without being asked he will take his eyes off the Atlanta Braves and rise to meet her needs. A small floor fan pointed in her direction shall cover a multitude of distresses.
The same well-seasoned man will also notice when she is suddenly wrapped in a blanket. Once Ozzie Albie catches the pop fly and throws the ball to Freddie Freeman for the double play, the well-seasoned man will, without a word, switch off the aforementioned fan.
He is also observant enough to notice when she is weeping. Though the Braves are tied with the Pirates in the bottom of the ninth he will mute the television during the commercial break to ask,
“You okay over there?”
Instead of blurting out something truthfully ridiculous like, “You’re cryin’ over a chewing gum commercial?” the well-seasoned man just nods. He understands that she is connecting with the high school couple and the song which says “I can’t help falling in love with you.” He understands that she is hoping her well-seasoned man still feels the same.
There may be times when the woman of the house goes on a rant over something he cares nothing about. She might preach a sermon while he tries to concentrate on the game that is almost over. He may in fact lose track of the valuable words that stream from her lovely face and find himself yelling at the umpire behind the plate for his inaccurate calls.
When she stops speaking and asks, “What did you say?” the well-seasoned man will be wise enough to meet her gaze and smile.
“I said, ‘Your hair looks nice.’”
That’s when the well-seasoned woman will tip her head and inquire,
“Who’s winning?”
At that point she should expect a complete play-by-play recap and silently thank God for her well-seasoned man.

Lynna Clark lives in Salisbury. Read more at LynnasWonderfulLife.wordpress.com