Weaved into the Fabric

 

            The Anderson family were well known and greatly loved in their community, but their fourth child, a little girl named Annalise was nothing like her two older sisters, who wanted to do nothing more than succeed in their modeling careers, while Annalise was only interested in being like her father who was a diesel mechanic with an incredible ability to fix anything that fell out before him.

              She would sit at the threshold of her sister’s bedroom door, watching them as they dressed up, apply makeup to one another, and send pictures to boys at the university, all of which greatly confused her, leaving her wondering why they did nothing of actual value to make the world a better place. Annalise found it simpler to merely pull her hair back into a single ponytail, wear jeans and a t-shirt and befriend anyone and everyone who would speak with her.

              While her sisters would spend their afternoons after school scrolling through social media, giggling, and sending texts to more boys that she could count, Annalise would sit with her father, ask questions about his work, offer suggestions for problems that plagued him, and read his relatively small library of books on mechanical engines. She and her father would spend weekends taking apart engines in their garage and afterwards she would look at her grease-stained hands, often comparing herself to her sisters who knew nothing but fashion and vanity.

              As she reached her later teenage years, she began to draw attention from the boys at school, who saw her as someone different and better than the empty-headed, silly, and vain girls that surrounded them. In what were supposed to be dates, Annalise would end up spending time with “the guys” talking about cars, engines, recent repair jobs she accomplished and their plans to graduate and work through trade school.

              Though she was plain, friendly, and talkative, all of her friends at school knew that she was secretly beautiful and wondered why she put so little time into taking advantage of her appearance to gain more attention from the many boys who were enamored with her. She still despised her empty-headed sisters and their ridiculous vanity, desiring to find a man who was a replica of her father. Someone who knew how to work, who knew how to sacrifice and provide for others, so she was not willing to settle for vanity and distraction.

              She watched her sisters drop out of university to pursue careers in modeling, leaving behind a grand opportunity to make something good of themselves, to learn, to grow, and to add genuine value to the world. As her final year of high school finished, she and her brother remained at home alone with their parents, no longer having the ridiculous distraction of their older sisters to waste their time.

              Annalise, Robert, Paul, and Anthony, known as the Quadrinity, all agreed to enroll at the trade school in the diesel mechanics class, being there for one another, helping one another, bouncing questions and answers between them all, knowing that having close friends to discuss and solve problems would be a huge advantage for them to achieve their final success. After making the decision to enroll, she explained her dreams and plans to her father, who could not have been more pleased with her passion to do and be more.

              Two years of trade school passed and saw Annalise and her three friends graduate, to then move on and open their own diesel mechanic’s shop. They chose the name ARPA Mechanics Shop and within two weeks of purchasing all of their necessary equipment, they saw a remarkable growth in their client base. Anthony was especially good with the business side of things and occasionally helped when the shop became too busy for the other three to meet their deadlines.

              Annalise could feel herself desiring for a place of her own, no longer wanting to share a living space with her brother and parents, which eventually led to the four of them renting an apartment that was much closer to their shop. Eighteen months into their new living arrangements, Annalise and Robert began to draw close together, having the same interests and a desire to be together as more than mere friends.

              Tensions began to mount as Paul and Anthony could see the friendly dynamic beginning to change with this new twist in relationships between them all. Paul and Anthony made the announcement that they would be moving out because of the way that things had changed between them all. Robert and Annalise sat together on the couch and watched their two friends slowly pack all of their belongings, leaving them with a half-decorated home.

              “Well, this is kind of awkward,” Robert said, “I don’t think this change in living arrangement will have any impact on our business, at least I hope not.”

              “Honestly, Robert,” she said, “I think this will be better anyway. Paul and Anthony are good friends, but it has become kind of awkward now that you and I are together. I don’t think we’ll have any trouble paying our bills. Let’s go get some ice cream. I feel like celebrating."

              Robert stood, pulled Annalise to her feet and the two of them walked downtown to the Cold Stone Creamery. They ordered their favorite dessert, sat down, and distracted themselves with people watching, Annalise wondering why she was so different from all of the other girls at school, in the community, and in this ice cream shop.

              “Are you happy with me, Robert?” she asked.

              “Yes, I absolutely am,” he said. “You are exactly the person I want to be with. I am so glad you are not silly and distracted like all of the other girls, at school, in the community, and here. We are the perfect couple, and I would never trade you for anyone else. Please continue being you.”

              She looked down at her short, and grease-stained fingernails, to immediately look around at the bright and shiny girls around her with their fashionable clothing and manicured, colorful nails. She gazed across the table to look into Robert’s eyes and wiped a bit of ice cream from the corner of his mouth.

              “This was so nice to get out and do something different,” she said. “I can’t wait to make a new, free, and beautiful life with you. It’ll be nice to have our apartment to ourselves without having to worry about being interrupted by Paul and Anthony.”

              Three more months passed as Annalise, Robert, Paul, and Anthony continued growing as the best diesel mechanic shop to go to in town. Their friendships remained strong and solid, creating a happy and whole relationship at the shop and on the occasional after work get togethers. The four of them went to a movie on a Friday night, went their separate ways and returned to their homes.

              Robert and Annalise took the elevator to the second floor, silently slipped into their apartment. He closed the door behind them, dropped to one knee and held out a small jewelry box, working hard to not break into tears, asking Annalise to marry him and make a right and proper household.

              She immediately said yes, kissed him, and pulled him to the dining room table. “We need to start making plans, we need to tell our friends and parents. I don’t want to wait too long. This is something I have been wanting for a long time.”

              “I’ve been planning this moment for the last month,” he said. “I don’t think we’ll need more than three months to put this together. I think we can make this a small ceremony for only a few friends and family. I’ve said this earlier, I am so incredibly happy that you are with me, and I really love you for who you are.”

              Six months after the small wedding ceremony in Annalise’s parent’s backyard, she found her waistline growing, now that Robert Junior was growing inside of her.

              “Please be careful in the shop,” Robert said. “Don’t lift anything heavy. All of us can take care of those things. Your health and the baby’s health are the most important things here, right now. I know that both your mom and my mom are willing to watch him once in a while. It would be good if you could do the part time work thing and stay at home mom thing. Being with our little goober is really important.”

              Three more months passed, and Annalise watched her fingernails grow and become less grease stained. She watched little Robert Junior grow, spend three or four days a week at home with him, or visiting her mom, her mother-in-law, and occasionally stopping in at the shop, taking care of the business side of things while her husband and two friends maintained a thriving diesel mechanics business.

              Five years passed and Robert Junior began attending kindergarten, which allowed Annalise to put in more time at the shop, and keeping her home clean and in order, loving the fact that she could be the mostly stay-a-home wife and mother who could take care of her husband’s needs while he spent many hours in the shop.