For 20 years it's been Susan Branch

 Good Morning!  The sun is shining.....wait!  What?  The sun is shining and it isn't raining?  Holy Moses alert the media!  But they probably know already.  I can't believe it!  Last week roads were washed out and the crops are waterlogged.  I am so happy that the sun is out I am almost giddy!  **doing a little jig right now**

Anyway, for all of my women friends who read this, think back to when you were very first married and learning how to make your little two bedroom, sometimes one bedroom apartment, a home.  Think about looking at material to make a blanket or shower curtains that you thought were feminine yet manly enough that your new hubby wouldn't go "Yuk" at.  How learning to love this new person in your life and in your space was sometimes really hard to do.  

I got married 6 weeks after my husband returned from Desert Storm.  He was getting out of the Air Force and then going to college the fall of 1991.  We moved to Brookings South Dakota the end of August into a small two room...not two bedrooms, two room...apartment and I worked at a bank.  He went to school and I paid the bills.  I will never forget the first time he washed and DRIED my beautiful cashmere plum colored sweater!  It would have fit an American Girl Doll now.  I was crushed and so, so angry.  For about 3 days I barely spoke to him.  I couldn't believe he could do that, he just ruined it.  What I didn't realize is how bad he felt.  Probably because he didn't say anything either.  See, neither of us were the worlds best communicators at that point.  I am an only child and didn't really ever have to explain myself or share anything and he is the 4th child out of 6.  Yes... middle child.  Rather than talk about anything, he would get on a horse and go ride around.  

So here we were, two stubborn young yahoo's that didn't know how to talk to each other.  How does this have to do with Susan Branch you ask?  Well...after we left Brookings Jerry transfered to Utah State University in Logan.  I got a job cutting hair in the little barber shop in the Student Center.  Right across the hall way was the Aggie Bookstore.  On my breaks I would walk over there and look at the many books and calendars that they had.  In the fall of 1992 I found a Susan Branch Calendar and fell in love with her art work, quotes, recipes and the beautiful colors she uses in her books and calendars.  She gives little thoughts about making your table look welcoming and how to make your day a little happier. She quotes everyone from Mark Twain to Gandhi.  I bought a calendar that fall and ever since then I have  had a Susan Branch calendar in my kitchen.  I have also bought many of her books that have taught me to love my home and surroundings where ever I am.  And also she has helped me to understand that it is the little things in life matter and that is how she lives her life which she then passes that knowledge on through a calendar.  

20 years later Jerry and I are still stubborn and not the world's best communicators, but we have learned a thing or two along the way about talking and about love.  The biggest lesson we have learned I think is that marriage is work and compromise.  If I ever meet her, I want to thank Susan Branch for helping me to learn the value of being a wife and taking pride in my home.  She helped a really young woman see the importance of patience and listening in my environment.  Her words have been powerful and made a big difference in my life.  Thanks Susan!