My oldest son is getting married in about a week, and a frequent topic of discussion in my family has been whether I should keep the beard I’ve been growing since the day after Valentine’s Day. I say the day after Valentine’s Day because, while Bess says she doesn’t hate me having a beard, she doesn’t love it either. I’d been growing one since Christmas, and I shaved it off just for her on Valentine’s Day.
But then I let it grow out again and have kept it growing for half a year. My position was that I’d keep a beard as long as Bess could tolerate it, just like I tolerate Bess having short hair even though the woman I married 33 years ago had long, beautiful hair. (That woman was Bess, by the way.
Just to avoid confusion.) Dimon and Bess Kendrick-Holmes congratulate their youngest child Joe after his graduation from the University of Georgia in May. Anyway, with our son’s wedding day approaching, talk turned to whether I should keep the beard during the events of the weekend, including, of course, the photos.
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I knew what Bess’ vote, which carries the most weight, would be. While my beard has been a source of amusement for all four of our children, Bess encouraged me to ask the child who was actually getting married what he thought. Our son Robert is as agreeable and low-key a human being as you’ll find.
In fact, he’s incapable of saying anything negative about anybody or anything. As a child, Robert apparently hated green bea.