Talking Clothespins

Our son-in-law, Keith, is a prankster. When we were in the States one of his favorite tricks was to clip a clothespin to our shirts or coats without us knowing it right before he and Audrey would leave for their house. There would then be the inevitable follow-up phone call telling him we found it. Sometimes we paid him back and surprised him with the same prank.

We have found clothespins in the strangest of places. As a Christmas present one year we bought him a package of clothespins. Big mistake, right? Yes, that's right~after they left we found dozens of them clipped to the ceiling fans, quilts, etc. I made sure that their Christmas stockings were laden with them as well.

Hanging clothes on the line is something I began doing here in Zambia, having used a dryer in the States. After arriving in Zambia and unpacking the 20 foot container I found a number of wooden clothespins, or "pegs", in our belongings. The difference with these was that several of them had messages on them from Keith and Audrey~"We love you!", "We miss you!", and "Don't forget us!". Pulling a peg out of the bag with these words of love on them makes hanging out a pair of slacks more pleasant. They are wonderful reminders that we are loved. And, we would sooner forget to breathe and eat than to forget our children. We love and miss you, too!