Saturday, February 26, 2011

Glimpse of the Good Days

Today wasn't a perfect day - but it was a good day -- the kind that makes me hope for many, many more days like this in our future.

Jason and I spent the day knocking things off the neverending to-do list of new homeowners/engaged people/everyone. We moved furniture, I went to the grocery store and the post office while Jason studied, we ran errands and cooked some dinner. We did not agree every moment but we were agreeable for most.

During my errands I made a productive stop at Trader Joes, picking up lots of favorites: mediterranean hummus, pretzel slims and especially a fun surprise for Jason. When I arrived home, I quickly put the groceries away and popped Jason's falafel in the microwave. Having heard my arrival (or perhaps from sniffing out the snack), Jason made his way downstairs. Upon tasting this mediterranean treat--which I was so proud of providing--Jason's response? "It's not the best I've ever had." And with that, my delight in the surprise was 100% deflated. And I lovingly shared with him that I would like for him to lie in future instances.

Of course this story does not end here. Later in our good-not-perfect day, I attempted a new recipe: Asiago Cheese Dip. I failed. (Let me know if you try it and have better luck.) After the requisite hour and a half in the slow cooker, the dish was more liquid than dip. I removed the dish from heat, hoping it would at least solidify some. Jason, like a trooper, tried the dip. Then he got a bowl full and ate it with great enthusiasm. Does he actually like this Asiago Cheese Dip? Now I'll never know...thanks to the way I lovingly asked him to not be SO brutally honest.

Honesty is, I suppose, preferable after all.

Good...not perfect. I'll take it.

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Why Blog? Why Now?

I am starting this journey from overly independent. Those who know me best would emphatically agree. But as an outsider looking at an almost five year relationship, transitioning in to a ten month engagement and lifetime marriage, this blog's essence would seem complete before it's start.

But the stats of a relationship's past, do not make a relationship's future...and the journey begins each day anew. And each day's compromise of independence and interdependence has its own unique twist. So...I blog. Because that's what we self-important 21st century people do to express ourselves.

And I blog now because I realize, three months in to this engagement, that while there is an abundance of advice available to get people from "she said yes" to "I do; " there is little guidance for what comes after the "I do." I cannot begin to fathom all that comes after the dancing shoes are put away and the last plate is cleared at the reception; but with the honest and open examples of our parents' struggles and successes and the enduring love of fifty+ years of marriage with four sets of grandparents, surely we have a solid start to figuring it out?

In the marriage vows of the United Methodist tradition I am a part of, there is a phrase that has caught my attention at wedding after wedding. In the exchanging of the rings, the bride and groom both say
with all that I am
and all that I have
I cherish you
Well all that I am seems like quite the offering. And all that I have? Well that's not much...but it is what I have been given and what I have earned, right?! How do I share that when I have been shaped to be miss independent? And how do we each retain our individualism while becoming a team? I'm sure that the crowd of fifty+ years of marriage would tell us that there is not just one easy answer...
So I blog, now. With all that I am and all that I have.
CHERISH.
eqf