Sunday afternoon we ventured out for a walk with the dog. I have a website I use to find hikes within 30 miles of our house and it's great because it includes the length and difficulty and also the approximate time required to complete different hikes in the area. In addition, hikers who have taken the various hikes leave helpful notes relating to any issues they ran into along the way. Comments like, 'Lovely walk around the reservoir, didn't make it to the other side as we encountered two bear and felt the need to turn around.'
Like I said-helpful.
Now normally hubs and I are on the same page with this sort of thing but on Sunday it seems we were not. We were both prickly. Actually, hubs was prickly and I responded in kind. He may dispute this point but suffice it to say moodiness was plentiful when we started out.
He was not too keen on this destination from the get-go but I didn't pick up on that until we were en route. Normally hubs is not one to beat around the bush, that's my department. He's more of a tell it like it is kind of guy except for some reason on Sunday he wasn't. Or maybe he was and I neglected to listen which is also a possibility to consider but I'm telling the story so we'll go with my take on the whole thing.
Which always ends well so don't you worry.
We didn't have the sat nav with us so we were winging it a little and as we got closer we could tell this hike wasn't for us. Okay, maybe hubs could tell long before we got close and then when we got close there may have been a little I told you so but whatever, there was too much suburb and not enough woods and space.
Not only that but we couldn't figure out the crazy parking which only made one of us more irritated. We turned around and drove back towards home, each one feeling disappointed and annoyed with the other. It doesn't make sense but that's how married life is sometimes.
It's quite often the little things.
As we were zipping along in our respective silences we noticed a sign with an arrow pointing to a lake and at the last minute hubs turned off and asked if I'd 'seen any trails in this area' and... 'remember when we lived in NJ a long time ago and I used to go to the office this way' and 'there's a sign for a bear crossing!' and giggles and 'oh shoot, I wish I had a picture of the sign' and ever so slowly the tension in the car began to ebb. We wound around and around and over and through, away from the edges and back to the middle. While it wasn't where we thought we were going we did end up in a really beautiful place.
That's also how married life is sometimes.
The trees parted as we came round a bend and there sat Ringwood Manor which has a long history dating back to our #1 President-
Let's not forget to mention the fabulous grounds with plenty of geese to chase-
We rambled and peeked and photographed and as the clock ticked we found our way back to our everyday normal.
Lenape Indians once lived in this area and nothing would make my hubs happier than to stumble across an artifact from those days. They're still finding what the park service refers to as 'new old roads of historical significance' in this park so ya just never know, do you?
We stood where George Washington stood and we thought about that for a while. Ringwood Manor was at one time home to Robert Erskine who managed three iron making plantations from this location and went on to become the army's first geographer and surveyor and General Washington's mapmaker.
I love finding a small slice of history pie on a Sunday afternoon in March.
We laughed at our crazy wannabe circus dog and decided to extend the day, taking the long way home. Suddenly it didn't matter that we weren't sure of our precise location and when or if we'd hit the main highway. We felt our way back...around the lake, thru a little village, stopping for a late afternoon meal, and then finally pulling back into our own driveway.
When you've been married for many years and you're feeling cranky, blah, or just inexplicably touchy its easy to use a sharp tone. It's equally easy to use no tone...to somehow expect your other half to read your mind, know what you're feeling and act accordingly. Doesn't work that way.
Will I never learn?
We have choices. Every minute of every hour of every day.
When moodiness rolls in I tend to like to wallow in it for a while.
Not attractive I know, but there it is.
Hubs does not wallow. He likes to put it all out there. No holds barred but then let's move on.
I've learned thru the years that little things in married life are not really so little. Those are the kinds of things that wind up pinging around inside your brain. Little things need to be dealt with before they pile up because we all know what happens when stuff gets stacked too high.
Did you know swans generally mate for life?
Thankfully so did we.
I love that my husband can make me laugh even when I want so badly to be mad. He knows that's what I need to shake a mood. I know that's what I need too, even when I'm too stubborn to admit it.
Sometimes married life really is a walk in the park.
