"It Looks Good"

One of the things I remember the most clearly was his opinions. These probably because he voiced them so loudly. His opinions of clothes and complements I shall never forget. Many a Sunday morning I would walk up and say, "I like how you put this shirt with this sweater." (He always wore jeans, so I never felt the need to comment on his pants.) He would then embark on a long explanation of why the sleeves of the shirt must be folded over just so, and how the collar must look, etc. He had a pair of ancient cowboy boots he had found at the thrift store. No big spender on clothes himself, his accessory wardrobe consisted of many of these types of finds. His shirts and jeans mom would always supply, but his coats and his cowboy boots were thriftshop discoveries.
One morning I approached him after the service. I liked the shirt he had on - it was a dark gray with silver pin stripes. Stepping up to him I said, "That shirt is beautiful."
I have since learned that calling anything owned by this guy "beautiful" is a social mistake of the highest order.
"Beautiful is feminine; you don't call me beautiful!" He argued, the humor still thick in his voice. After arguing unsuccessfully about the word usage and origin I finally asked,
"Then how do I complement your outfit?"
"You call it good. Or you don't say anything at all," was his reply.
"I can do that. Can I call it cool?"
"Yes, you can do that. Frankly, I don't like people complementing my clothes, but if you're gonna do it, say it's good."
When I look at his clothes, when I hear what he says, when I remember what he has done, when I see the love he poured into all of those around him, it is good. It is so good.