A while ago I wrote about how opposites attract. It’s still my opinion that Mother Nature does this on purpose to keep the world in balance. Otherwise we humans would probably die out in very short order. Like by next Tuesday.
Here’s an example of how two people that are very similar get along. They’ll remain nameless to protect their identities as well as protecting me from their wrath.
I had just gotten home from my summer job one afternoon. When I got into the kitchen, I heard voices coming from downstairs. I called out to tell them I was home and my Mom called to me to come down for a minute.
I found her sitting on a stool around the corner of the staircase. Mom had the posture of someone watching a particularly good stage show – eyes bright, a smile on her face, leaning forward so she wouldn’t miss a thing. She motioned for me to stand beside her and pointed over to the object of her attention.
My brother and Dad were over by the plumbing stack, talking, pointing and arguing away (remember, no names). When I was about to ask Mom what was going on, she did the mom-shush thing with her hand and we watched everything unfold.
Dad would start talking about the run of pipe that had to go over to the new washroom and shower room he was building in the corner, saying something about run length and drop off the pipe to make sure the water flowed downhill to the shower. My brother would then argue that if the pipes came into the shower and bathroom from this direction the pipes would be able to flow properly and they could tie it all in over at the supply.
My brother would be pointing at the ceiling joists as he said this and then Dad would argue that it had to start from that end or it wouldn’t reach and there would have to have another connection. Then my brother would start to count the connections needed from the stack and Dad would count from the shower end and they would still end up with a different number.
As Mom and I watched the show, I leaned over and asked, (quietly I thought), “They are talking about the same thing, aren’t they?” Mom just nodded, not trusting her voice at the moment. Apparently I wasn’t as quiet as I thought, as the argument across the basement suddenly ceased and two pairs of eyes stopped me in my tracks. “Sorry,” I said, “Carry on.” So they did.
“How long have they been at this?” I asked. “The better part of the afternoon” she said.
“They do know that they’re arguing on the same side, don’t they?” Mom just giggled.
“If you have anything constructive to say, say it. If you are just going to comment from the peanut gallery, you can go” said the slightly miffed, unnamed Dad. I was about to speak up again, but Mom just patted my hand and motioned that we should go upstairs.
You may have guessed by now that my brother and Dad are a lot alike in many ways. I wouldn’t say stubborn, but there is really no other way to say it. I mean there is mulish, obstinate, bolshie (yes, bolshie. Look it up), but really, when it comes down to it, stubborn is the best.
It only becomes apparent when they work together. They both think the same way but sometimes start at different places. Eventually, it all worked out. The shower showered and the sink drained appropriately. Luckily, it took a while and provided the rest of the family with a bit of entertainment and proved without a doubt that there is a good reason opposites attract.
Balance is everything.
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