The sun is rising on the coast of Maine over the quaint Ocean Point Inn.
My wife Laurie, and I are sitting on Adirondack chairs, cups of warm coffee in hand, watching gulls and loons skim the water in search of breakfast.
We’re vacationing, and as I gaze over this quintessential New England scene of rock and rippling sea I’m thinking …
We beat the odds!
After more than 40 years, somehow Laurie and I are still happily together.
I must confess that over the course of those years, the arc of our lives and our love often got blurred — or buried — while raising two sons, pursuing careers, caring for elderly parents, fending off financial concerns, and tending to all the other more nuanced trials and tribulations that confuse and complicate marriages…and life.
But somewhere during our journey we learned how to fight fair, to be honest with each other (telling the truth means never having to remember what you said), to not hold grudges, to respect and learn from one another, and to deeply care for each other’s physical and emotional well-being.
Truth be told, Laurie always has been the string to my balloon. It’s taken me decades to transform from an angry young man to a belatedly calmer, though still edgy, ole boomer who understands that true prosperity is appreciating what one has. And I — nay, we, Laurie and I — have quite a bit.
Today we’ll kayak the waters just outside our rented seaside accommodations, dine on succulent seafood, walk the rocky shoreline, and fall into bed, loving one another.
Fact is, after decades of being responsible for others, it’s now our time.
However, after bearing close witness to what our parents went through during their final years, we’re fully aware that what we have today won’t necessarily be here tomorrow.
That’s why we’ve vowed that the most important thing we can do for ourselves is to stay as healthy as we can for as long as we can.
We’ll spend the rest of our years trying to give back a bit of what we’ve been given and hopefully leave our progeny and our little acre of the world a bit better than what we first encountered.
And tonight, before going to bed, we’ll watch the sun set over lovely Ocean Point, understanding that nothing is forever, that life is fleeting — but good — and for that we are eternally grateful!
