She poured us a second glass of wine. I said something that made her laugh. Her laughter caused me to laugh.
After a third glass of wine, after we split a cider, and then split another cider…the funny part of the night was over. We had crossed over to hilarious! The slightest twitch of my face was causing her to produce guffaws, lightly seasoned with snorts. The new year was just about an hour away. Younger, thinner versions of us used to do this on a regular basis. Whatever happened to those kids? I took another sip of cider and stared at her. Her smile has not changed, the nose crinkle that accompanies that smile has not changed. Her dappling of freckles across her crinkled nose has not changed. Those two kids didn’t go anywhere, at least not that night.
Christmas Break isn’t such a break for parents. The girls have been all over the emotional spectrum, delight and magic at meeting Santa and opening their gifts; all the way to snarling hissing fights, screaming, cabin fever, boredom and snide tones.
For over a month we had been rushing somewhere for something with a couple of tiny someones in tow.
But that wasn’t the case on New Years Eve. The tree was put away, our Living Room had doubled in size. Both girls were sleeping. A bad movie that was screaming for our running commentary was playing in the background. We were happily trapped with each other. We had nothing to do, nowhere to go the next day. The daily hustle and bustle that tends to bury and muffle Love was stripped away that night, all we had was the company of the other, along with a needed and appreciated reminder that we are still madly in Love with each other. I thought the highlights of this Christmas Vacation were all about the kids. I changed my mind about that. This was the real gift, some time with my wife.
2016 was an incredible year for us, possibly one of the most dynamic years we ever had together. There was a lot of hard work, celebrations, joy, self-discovery and Love. Dreams were realized and pursued. We seized life in a way we had never done before.
We have no intentions of loosening our grip in 2017. We will be working toward living our lives to the fullest.
I recently read an article that cited a book titled The Top Five Regrets of the Dying: A Life Transformed by the Dearly Departing by Bronnie Ware. Two of the regrets listed that struck me were: “I wish I’d had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.” and “I wish that I had let myself be happier.”.
What sad regrets! We have only one life, for all I know, 2017 is my final year on this world. I think I would like to go out being truer and happier.
I think I’ll make those my resolutions for 2017, be true to myself, and be happier.
“Happy New Year Babe!” My daydream ended and I looked up, she was smiling at me, holding up her tumbler of cider.
“Happy New Year!” I replied with a smile as we clinked glasses and kissed. “I’m thinking this will be a pretty good one!”