It's day two of my new weekday life without Eddie. I mentioned that we have done this before, so I saw him off early yesterday morning without tears (not sure if I am capable of them at 4:15 AM anyway). I am bound and determined to make our time apart productive and as fulfilling as possible. I have my nose to the grindstone at the office and do my best to fill my evenings with work around the house, my regular gym schedule and other sundry activities. For the most part, I am so active and diligent in my attempts to distract myself, I forget that I am actually alone. The only two circumstances when I cannot ignore that weird feeling that something is missing are the bookends to my day.
My husband is noise incarnate. He talks, he snorts, he snores, he sings (loudly). Those of you acquainted with him know just what I am talking about. Eddie has a life force about him that I have often wished to emulate, but have been unable to duplicate. It's just impossible to remain ignorant of his presence. So it was as I got dressed for work yesterday morning that I wondered about the eerie quiet. When Eddie was unemployed, he wasn't even awake at that time, so why did I feel so alone? I realized that even my husband's sleeping noises carry a weight and comfort for me. His tossing and turning, coughing and heavy breathing became as much a part of my morning routine as did wrapping my scarf around my neck before walking out the door.
When I came home from the office for the day, I found myself calling out to him from the front door out of habit. I somehow hoped he'd stick his head out of our office door to bellow the familiar, "Hello Pumpkin!" There are so many instances where I have found the attention grabbing and scene stealing powers of my husband to be annoying, but once they are missing from my everyday, I realize that I am nothing without my larger than life better half.
There are many couples in far more dire straits than us, and I only need to keep this up for four to six months. It will get easier each week. The human being's ability to adapt to change is really quite remarkable, no matter how we may resist new scenarios at times. It's sort of tough though when the person you most want to discuss these ideas with is the one person you just can't see.
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Hello Becky,
ReplyDeleteIf interested,I can give you my number. My wife guarantee's I will annoy the heck out of you!!
It's nice to read about a woman who actually cares about her husband and refers to him as the better half! In pop culture (TV,Movies,etc.),the American married male is usually a buffoon,an ignorant slob,an adulterer or an all-around jerk.
While the wife is a sympathetic figure who sticks by her imperfect mate. In real life,we are all just people trying to make a better life for ourselves,our kids and each other. We all have our faults. We all fail,we all struggle and hopefully we all can learn. I hope the time between your husband abscenses flies by!
Take Care,
JIM
Max and I have seen each other every single day of our six years of marriage with the exception of our famous sister trip to Indy. That's the only time I rember not seeing him. I can't imagine what you are going through :(
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