The Wife Also Rises

     Today started out on a definite down note. Last night was not the best; and as of this morning much of what was left unsaid was draped in the bedrooms delicate orange hue. I often speak to others about the freeing power of doing something different or being someone new. Today, it was my turn. I think it turned out for the best.

     Last night, the wife and I got into a tif that evolved into a pier six brawl. (Don't go down to pier 6!! Also, learning for the young lads out there - know when to bow out gracefully before enflaming the women. I would have done well to live to fight another day; before things got ugly.) I stayed up well into the night reliving the injustice of what had been said to me; sucking on battery acid while staying huddled in the warmth of my ego. So many times in the past I have been placed in a position of being the donkey to beat; and strolling back through those moments of being a thing rather than a person was simple. All those had faded from my life; but here I was again. When I awoke to the wife this morning, she gave me the kiss (see previous blogs!) before leaving; with both of us still in a snit. I couldn't get back to sleep, so I settled back into that comfortable chair of cinematic cruelty, considering how little I meant to my wife.

      Except I don't. All at once, a(n) (epiphany/ thunderstrike/ moment of clarity/ end of stupidity) dawned on me with the knowledge that I wasn't disliked by the wife. She loves me (or so a little (humming)bird has told me). This wasn't going to break our bond, it was a momentary lapse of wonder where we allowed ourselves to be human. I gathered my thoughts of denial and tossed them in the Trash Bin Folder in my mind. My wife is so awesome and loves me so much that I can't even legitamitely convince my own mind she dislikes me. That's a powerful statement that invalidates and self sorrow I may try to cover myself in. After dislodging my head from my butt, I went about finding a way to give my wife a smile for the morning (while also letting her passively know that all hostilities had ended). (Dude note number two: It is not a weakness to give your wife a smile; no matter what is going on between you two or outside of you two. It's part of what we agree to when we marry - create the "better" and fight together through the "worse") I sent her an email with a series of pictures that told a simple but loving story - I don't want to fight and I love you. (Dude #3: be creative! No one likes the same thing over and over ad infintinuim - even "I love you") Deed done, she called me shortly after and life was back where it belonged. I was able to let my angst go, be creative, and ultimately get kissy face from the wife. Ain't too proud to beg, admit nothing is more important than my wife, or do what I must to make her happy.

      Where is the down side in that?