The price of chivalry $329.42

Thats the exact price. How do i know?  Read on. But i do have to say everyones price is different. 

I thought id pay a high price for chilvery but it turns out it wasnt a high dollar amount.  The more expensive price for me was not paying the dollar amount earlier. 

The door lock on the passengers side of my vehicle broke and that was the beginning of my chilvary challenges. All of a sudden i was unable to open the door for my wife and daughter.  No big I thought, that part is probably expensive and the Jones family can live without it; my girls are independent AND...we have a keyless remote; I click, they enter.

Things were fine, we were living by the rules of the remote and I tried to tell myself it was all good because the money I saved was offset by a small inconvenience.


But then, it got worse. 

The keyless remote stopped working on the passengers side too.  Now, the only way to open the locked passenger door was to enter the drivers side and reach over to open the passengers side from the inside (when did they stop putting key locks on the passenger side).  Still, i couple of seconds was all that it took and I was still saving money.  But deep inside I knew I was vicariously teaching my daughter bad chivalry (and probably how to be a cheapskate instead of frugal....but thats another story).  Even in the rain this problem was overcome by a 5 second delay, I go first, passengers later, no prob.

The plot thickens

We went out to eat with several couples.  After the meal, we all in the parking lot after a late departure and several couples were parked near us.  Since we dinned late, the parking lot was virtually empty.  Everyone went to their cars, and in my heart of hearts I heard a collision; it was my cheap-ness running smack into the middle of my chivalry (and probably pride). Ya, deep in my heart I knew this accident was inevitable, I knew I was not being frugal but cheap but more so lazy (who wants to take the care to the repair shop). The crash occured and I thought everyone would see and hear it.  So (I thought) Everyone was looking at us...to see if I was going to let my wife in first and be chivalrous man or be that "fend for yourself, because your are strong and its 2012, I dont treat women like princesses guy".  So I did the only thing I could do....I walked my wife to the passenger side of the car, grabbed her and kissed her like I meant it..  Yep, I covered by chivalry sins with faux flirtation.

Time for a fix.  Time to come clean.  Time to fess up and drop the cash and do what is really right.  No more bad modeling or fake justification or excuses to keep away from the repair shop.  Time to man up and fix this problem.

I still dont know why I finally fixed the door for them or me...probably the principle.

I dropped the cash; best 300 bucks I spent in a while.  It felt good.  Good to do what is right.  Good to open the door for my girls.  Good to feel like a (chivalrous) man.  Good to model for my family.  But mostly good to show my daughter that only good and Godly men open doors for ladies and treat them like princesses.

Why Say Goodbye?

In general, people don't like goodbyes.  “Later”, “see ya” or other euphemisms are usually more heard than “Goodbye”.  Shakespeare coined the phrase parting is such sweet sorrow, but really? C’mon Bill.  Here is the quote in context...

Even though saying goodbye is as normal as hello, we dont like to end things.  Ya, goodbye is not permanent but it does signify that we are stopping something.  

Is goodbye sweet?  Is it sorrowful?  Is it both or neither?  Saying goodbye to a bad habit and saying goodbye to your kids for a long work trip are sweet and sorrowful but only in that order.

Goodbye to the the heat.  Goodbye to Summer.  Goodbye to long hours and longer days.  Goodbye to seasonal acquaintances, throngs of people bees and mosquitoes.  It seems that parting is more sorrow than sweet because of our fond memories.

But saying goodbye to something means saying hello to others.

Hello to the FutureThere is a great big world out there with lots of new people to meet, things, to do, books to read or write and so on.  We cannot embrace the past too much or we forget were in the present but making plans for the future.

Hello the the Next ChapterA chapter must be finished before a new one can begin.  Time to turn the page and see what God has next.  The next chapter could be better than the last.

Hello to Fall, Holidays, Winter and MoreFootball, new classes, new challenges at work, new friends, new halloween costumes (ha) Thanksgiving feast, Christmans and NEW Years all await, hello.

Hello to New FriendsWe all need new friends new influences and new experiences.  People have a wonderful way of providing so much layer to an otherwise controlled life.  Old friends are a must but new ones are a blessing.

Hello to New GrowthUltimately, we need to grow and change (saying goodbye) is part of that process.  There are some things we must say goodbye to and some things we would rather not but unless we say goodbye to some, we may not be able to say hello to others.

Embrace the Goodbye.

In closing enjoy the rest of the quote as a parting salve.

Juliet:

'Tis almost morning, I would have thee gone—

And yet no farther than a wan-ton's bird,

That lets it hop a little from his hand,

Like a poor prisoner in his twisted gyves,

And with a silken thread plucks it back again,

So loving-jealous of his liberty.

Romeo:

I would I were thy bird.

Juliet:

Sweet, so would I,

Yet I should kill thee with much cherishing.

Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow,

That I shall say good night till it be morrow.

Romeo And Juliet Act 2, scene 2 

Bonus Material....