G. K. Chesterton observed, “We are perishing for want of wonder, not for want of wonders.”
Recently my husband and I went to a local meeting of the Kansas Policy Institute and Bastiat Society. We are not members of either, but go occasionally as guests. There are some great speakers and the room is always filled with movers and shakers of the community.
This particular evening’s speaker was Larry Reed, President of the Foundation for Economic Education. Economics at this level is a tad out of my wheel-house but the topic was on the relationship between Liberty and Personal Character. It was a
refreshing evening and we got to see a lot of friends. During the presentation, Mr. Reed referred to the I, Pencil essay to illustrate one of His points. Many eyes in the room glanced at my Husband.
The Founder of the Foundation for Economic Education was Larry Read (no relation to the above Mr. Reed), wrote the insightful I, Pencil essay. It is one of my husband’s favorite works (although with over 5,000 books in his library, his favorite changes regularly).
He has used this essay as a template to teach eighth grade composition students the components of the five paragraph essay. The essay has many facets and of course, illustrates the power of free economics using a simple familiar object. But it also honors, well, the pencil.
Pencils Connect
My husband is, among many wonderful things, a connoisseur of pencils. I would say collector, but that is but merely a sub-set of His pencil passion. He:
- buys, sells and trades pencils world-wide.
- is a member of an undefined group of pencil connoisseurs who are fascinated with all things concerning fine pencils. They know stuff about pencils that we ordinary uninformed folk completely overlook.
- carries only the finest of pencils, but not for show or prestige, but to enjoy using them as one enjoys a glass of fine wine.
David sells on eBay under the name (surprise): Pencilwhipper. He has been generous with his knowledge of pencils, lead, erasers and ferrules in the descriptions he posts. Some are entire history lessons like these WW II Eagles!
Pencils And Other Stones
I share this bit about my spouse of 40 years to illustrate the various wonders that each of us possess in terms of gifts, talents, abilities and acquired knowledge. In the vernacular of this BLOG, pencils are one of the stones in my husband’s Stonebridge. He has a few more than my four, or perhaps his are a bit more scattered.
Our two bridges do not look the same, nor do they intersect much. That makes our combined lives fuller and more interesting. He was allowed into the inner sanctum of air traffic control because of that stone in my bridge, and I have a greater appreciation of things like pencils than I would have. We do have one common stone: our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Yet even to that common realm we bring our own unique relationship. Again, it makes that stone more interesting, more vibrant, more robust.
So, now I come to the real reason I wrote this post, this is My husband’s birthday week.
Happy birthday to the Love of my life.
Do you prefer to have relationship with those with similar interests and views, or those who challenge and expand your own assets?