A Simple Valentine

I thought about what to write for my Valentine’s Day post.  Should it be a passionate poem to my wife or maybe some POWERFUL journal entry that tells of my wonderful marriage and the little one on the way?  But I really don’t have that in me right now.  Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t a depressed post or anything.  It’s just that Liz and I are keeping it super simple this year and our day will be filled with work on the nursery and maybe a Netflix flick by days end.  There’s not much to write about, and my energy is focused on practical things right now.  My passion isn’t boiling over, but instead it’s simmering on the back burner.

I love my wife very much.  We’re best friends, there’s no doubt about that.  I have no more fun with a soul alive than I do with Liz.  We laugh A LOT and sometimes cry as well.  Our little dogs make us equally crazy and equally joyful.  We share many of the same passions and the ones we don’t, we appreciate for the sake of the other.

Liz is the most beautiful person I know.  There’s a certain innocence about her that can’t be matched.  There’s a child inside her that has yet to taste the sour of our society.  An untarnished soul that is pure and lite.

Yet she HAS felt pain, and much of it.  Brokenness has entered her life a few too many times and she’s created her OWN pain in the past.  But we’ve shared in this unsettled history and come through it stronger and closer than ever.  We’ve felt each others pain and created some of our own.  Our imperfect affection reminds us of the reality that is our relationship.  We accept the other for who they are and yet never stop pushing ever closer to perfection.

I simply love my wife and she simply loves me.  We equally complete this one body and have never questioned our place as partner to the other.  So on this Valentine’s Day I will simply smile as I work toward baby accommodations, side by side, with my beautiful wife.  No magic, no rhymes, no amplified emotions.  Just love, that is equally embraced and a fire that can only burn with these two entangled elements of humanity.

Happy Valentines! I hope your day is wonderful and your time spent with someone special.

Eric

Are You Best Friends With Your Spouse?

Liz and I

Liz and I

The last couple of months I have been extremely busy with my business and my blogs.  Between the daily grind and the ensuing struggles ahead, my mind has been preoccupied with my own responsibilities.  In the mean time, my wife has been taking on more responsibilities as well and we are finding it hard to be able to just ‘hang out’ like we used to.

Over this past weekend we had a family lunch/get together.  On the car ride over my wife and I had one of those moments when we were on exactly the same page. I was thinking exactly what she was about to say.  Then she opened her mouth, “I don’t want to lose our friendship.”

Even though I was thinking the same thing I was still taken back when I heard it come out of her mouth.  I quickly agreed and let her know my similar thoughts.  I  apologized for letting my mind be so fully consumed by my ‘responsibilities’ and assured her that I wanted nothing more than to continue to grow this wonderful friendship we had started 6 years ago.

My wife is a very sensitive woman, but only in the best kind of way.  She immediately smiled and I could see her relax just a little.  She accepted my apology.  She just needed to hear that I too desired a closeness that only comes from a strong, mutual friendship. Read more »