The Penguin

My husband Lew had a penguin.  It wasn't a real penguin, it was a little, plastic toy that he kept on the mantle of his house.  I never really asked him about it because I just figured it was a little whimsical thing he chose as a decoration, to add a bit of fun to an otherwise blah (in my humble opinion) atmosphere.

Fast forward 3 years.

After our honeymoon we moved from our separate places into "our house."  We unpacked box after box and put our things away.  when I unpacked the box that contained the penguin, I hid the little bugger in the back of a kitchen drawer, then trashed it when he wasn't looking.

Lew was out of sorts because he couldn't find the penguin.  Actually, distraught was more accurate.  I couldn't understand what the problem was.

"That stupid little penguin?  I thought it was just a plastic toy.  I got rid of it.  Why?"

He actually cried.

You see, the penguin was a McDonald's Happy Meal toy that was given to him by his sister.  Her son (Lew's nephew) asked her, as he lay dying in a children's cancer unit, to give Lew the penguin.  He kept it on his mantle ever since.

I had no idea.  I felt like wretching. There was no way to replace that penguin.  I searched and purchased one on ebay, but it wasn't the same one.  Of course, Lew forgave me, and the replacement penguin is on display in our dining room, but every time I look at it I am reminded of my cold, unfeeling heart toward the man I love.

Why didn't I ask him about the penguin?  I don't know.

I urge all you wives out there to not belittle or discount the silly little things your husband has sitting around.  I implore you to find out why he hangs onto that matchbox car, or that little piece of colored ribbon, or that cheap plastic lawn ornament.  That stupid, ugly, broken thing might have deep significance to your husband.