Living Together Alone

Theresa and I have been married for twelve years but this is the first time  we have been alone except for holidays. There is a special freedom with this new arrangement and we have been enjoying this new found circumstances. The time factor is the biggest difference. Since we do not have to concern ourselves with others we are able to manage our own time. Little things like being late for lunch or rushing home to prepare supper because someone depends on you for this service.

The spontaneity of decisions and the ability to change or alter plans without considerations for others is a pleasure we have noticed. Mealtimes and the menu can be simplified when you just want a snack instead of a meal and you want to put off having a dinner all together is easy.

When there is just the two of you all kinds of discoveries are possible and you become a different person because you are able to express all the facets of human behaviour without reservations because of the privacy of your life. I always realized the need for privacy and the value of this element in marriage but circumstances have prevented this from becoming a reality. The time we lived with others had a strong influence over our behaviour and much of that was great. The sharing of your life with a family member is one of the wonderful gifts you can bestow on a family member. We have been rewarded over and over by the presence of our mother  in our family.

This year because of insurance and other reasons we do not have our 95 year old mother with us. To say we miss her would be a mild term as never a day goes by but she comes up in our conversations. Although we know she lives in beautiful surroundings we hear words expressing her sorrow living without us.

We truly love the freedom we have but it comes at a cost. We hope that we will be able to afford the price.