"Deadwood"

 

                        Some of the more humorous moments of my recent life come when I am in communication with my realtor, who also happens to be my first cousin.  The goal we are both working toward is the sale of my parents’ home.  The folks who are on the line to buy the house are good honest people, and I look forward to finalizing the sale so that they can move in and have as happy a life there as we did. 

                        The humor throughout the process has come in a few of the questions and requests passed my way.  By Texas state law, all questions and answers must be documented on official paper. The latest question dealt with a tree in the front yard.  On the seller’s disclosure list I placed the information about this tree.  We are selling the house “as is,” so I gave a great deal of consideration on how to tell the whole story so that the buyers would be well served as well as well as the seller, specifically my father. The problem with the tree, and I stated this in the disclosure, is that the tree is dead.  The buyer’s realtor wrote to my realtor and asked about the tree.   The realtor, and I presume the buyers, wanted to know.  My initial response went something like this; “One tree, front yard on city right of way, right side of property; dead, deceased, no more, RIP.”  I closed out the thought, after dealing with it for a few moments, and decided to go to something more explanatory.

                        I figured what they wanted to know was this; “under what circumstances did the tree meet its demise?”  The honest truth, which I shared and do so in a forthright and true fashion, is that the tree was a victim of the success of another tree in the yard, the only survivor of the original five planted back in the 1960’s.  The survivor is huge, so large that its canopy and root system didn’t allow the other four trees to survive much less thrive. 

                        I know this is a stretch, but here goes. . . sometimes in life the organizations, individuals, and situations of life place some good old “dead wood” in one’s midst.  Mine, at the moment, happens to be growing, or not, in the front yard of my parents’ home across town.  Fortunately there is no such timber, “dead wood” that is, in the Greater Houston Coin Club.   Case in point; the recently completed Greater Houston Coin Club’s Money Show of the Southwest, our 50^th show, was amazing.  You all did a great job in volunteering and putting things together.  You were spectacular at being attentive to our guests, both the dealers and the “customers” who came to the show from a variety of places near and far.  All I really want to say, and this is simple and heart-felt believe me, is “thanks!!”  Thanks to all of you for stepping up to the plate and willingly taking upon yourselves the opportunity to volunteer and doing it so well.

                        And as for dead wood, well, we don’t have any in the Greater Houston Coin Club.  I do know where some can be found, but you’ll have to bring your own ax.

                        Have a blessed week.

 

Richard