Saturday, January 10, 2009

Remember that time I asked for a dance?

You were reluctant, but there was something, the way the lights hit your eyes, something that made you say "yes". And I had your hand and guided you to the dance floor, as though you needed any guiding. We were both awkward because the thing about dancing is that when one person is a little clumsy, both are, and I was none too graceful. But you were nice about it, you smiled and laughed about it and I held you close and you didn't mind.

And then there were more dances, hundreds of thousands of dances, some that didn't need music, some that weren't even real. But the one's that mattered, they were there. And it was always the same, the hands, the laughter, holding you close.

And then our first dance as husband and wife. We had our moments, frustrations, jars of red thrown against fragile walls, but no one is perfect. Anger never hurled at each other but more the air and trees around us. And we always came back to each other. Dancing.

And the times were tough. Wallets hardly weighed down pants even with waists that seemed to get thinner and thinner. But you still laughed and we still danced and things were right.

We had kids. Three of them. Two boys and a girl. Beautiful. Intelligent. TV dinners and fruit smoothies. They weren't Ivy League quality, whatever that means, but there humanity showed like that. And we loved them and each other, and they saw us dance, still clumsily.

And they grew up. They had children of their own. They all watched us dance to the music filling our heads, record players that never seemed to find the center.

And we died. The funeral was beautiful, there was happiness, and black clothing was forbidden. We died in each others' arms, smiling laughing, clumsily.

You won't remember any of that. The hands of the clock are still firmly shaking hands, making their business deals, in the here and now.

I don't promise that I can dance well or that I'm a great person or any of that.

But may I have this dance?

1 comment:

mooseinmyshoe said...

I can't wait for the day