Saturday, May 28, 2005

Meeting...part 5

“Rory, that’s sweet. But, I don’t think so. Not yet.” She smiled sweetly and rubbed his hand softly.

He was embarrassed by the rejection. However, he understood where she was coming from. “I guess we should go back inside. It’s getting late.” He kicked the dirt under the rubber sole of his Converse sneaker. He had worn the same brand since he was in elementary school.

“I hope I didn’t wound your ego, Rory. I’m just not quite ready. I was with someone only a four months ago and I had a hard time getting over him.” She smiled again and shined her eyes at him. “When the time is right, okay?”

Rory took her hand and they walked back to Greg’s. It would be a week before she would let him kiss her, but when that moment happened…he knew in his heart she was the one he would follow for the rest of his life.

“Rory, are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

“You were staring off into space. Are you sure you want to go dancing afterward? You must be pretty tired.”

“No, I’m not tired. Just thinking about something I need to do tomorrow.”

“Seems like you have a lot of responsibilities at work.”

“Yeah, it can get kind of crazy. But, let’s not talk about me all night. Tell me what’s going on with you. What have you been up to?”

She bit her lip and her eyes looked up. Unknowingly, her finger nails tapped the edge of the table. She was thinking. God, I love that look, thought Rory.

Thursday, May 26, 2005

A Different View

Only two weeks ago I finally ended the three-year journey of earning my master's degree. And, in the two weeks since that time, my view has changed on my life. No longer am I a slave to a strenuous schedule of classes, papers and readings. I don't regret school and all of the discipline it brings. In fact, part of me will miss it. But, I also feel free. I feel like my life has been released and I can spread my wings to touch the sun. I can do anything!

Before the looming stress of work would cut to my inner core. Now, I peer at this stress with la vie en rose. I can't help it. Nothing seems to get me down lately. Is it the achievement? Or the release? Or is it because my life seems to be synchronized to perfection at the moment?

My fiance is back home and our lives have intertwined with much more ease than I thought would be possible after a year apart. I am planning my wedding...a once in a lifetime event that I have waited for over the past seven years (I even found my dress!). I am on the top of my game at work and in my professional organization. And, I am finally decorating and organizing my house so that it looks as if adults, rather than college students, live here. I'm happy. I'm content. I'm ecstatic.

It is my hope that I can keep up with my blog at a better pace than I have recently.

Just a few extra notes:
Current readings -
Sunburnt Country by Bill Bryson (reading up for the honeymoon in Australia)
Mutiny on the Bounty by Nordoff
Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier (one of the most brilliant books ever!)
The Liar's Club by Mary Karr

Since being out of school, I have tried to control myself in the reading department, but obviously I am not too successful.

Most recent musical fascinations -
Van Morrison
Aslyn
Lifehouse

One last note...friends are some of the most precious people on the planet. They can make you smile at the perfect moment. I want to say thank you to my friend, Lydia. We talked on the phone today for an hour and it reminded me of why she is such an important part of my life. What a blessing!

Sunday, May 01, 2005

Meeting...Part 4

“Ah, it is the lovely couple. Why has it been so long since you come here?” asked Alberto. He was the jovial owner of Rosa’s. He had, like every good Italian boy would do, named the restaurant after his mother.

“No, no, Alberto. We’re not a couple anymore,” said Beth. She waved her hand from side to side and displayed an embarrassed smile. From the corner of her eye, Beth could see that the comment didn’t strike Rory in the most positive way.

Alberto looked at Rory with a questioning expression, his dark eyebrows bowing down toward the center of his nose. “What she mean?”

“Alberto, Beth and I haven’t been together for a couple of years now.”

“Now I have no faith in love anymore. You two. Oh, bellisima! So perfect! But, I suppose you know best.” He pulled the chair out for Beth.

“Miss Beth, you look very beautiful tonight. We have your favorite…mama’s lasagna.”

“I don’t know about you, Rory, but that’s what I’m having. And, Alberto, please bring me a glass of Merlot.”

Rory sat down at the table and started to lift up the menu. “I’ll have the same as the lady, Alberto.”

Alberto took the menus from the table and walked to the kitchen, leaving the two alone.

“I forgot how great this place was,” said Beth.

“Yeah, me too. Came here once after you and I broke up. It just wasn’t the same.”

Rory took his napkin off the table and laid it on his lap. When he lifted his eyes from his lap, he locked into a stare with Beth. Those blue eyes had made him weak so many times. At one time, those fiery sapphires could deceive with innocence, anger and passion. Her eyes were what first captivated him and held his attention six years ago.
***
He met her at a barbeque at a friend’s…Greg’s house to be more precise…in Austin. She was out from Los Angeles, visiting her sister, who turned out to be Greg’s fiancĂ©e. Greg introduced Beth with a short anecdote about a fishing-trip-gone-wrong the day before. Greg was showing her how to cast and she hooked an elderly gentlemen parked in a lawn chair right next to them. The man wasn’t upset about the ripped shirt, but the beer he spilled when he jumped up with surprise. The problem was remedied when Greg gave the man two beers to replace his one.

The entire time Greg related the story, Beth’s face was colored with various shades of pink and her laugh floated on a cloud to his ear. Delicately, she covered her mouth as she giggled. It was endearing. It reminded him of the Japanese women he met when traveling in Tokyo. More than just her laugh and her beautiful pixie-like face was her sparkling eyes. Their color instantly brought an image of the blue belles in his Aunt Pamela’s garden. They also brought to mind the perfect azure sky on a summer’s day in Wyoming.

Greg left after his story about Beth, leaving them to talk for the rest of the day and into the evening. At 2 a.m., he found himself sitting next to her on a swing at the park across from Greg’s house. He could smell her gardenia perfume on the wind. It intoxicated him.

“I know we just met today, but, Beth, can I kiss you?”

Dancing

This weekend has been busy and full of furious activity as I prepare for my thesis defense this Tuesday. To get out of the house and get a few things done ahead of time, I headed to Kinko's.

After making some copies and cropping a few pieces for mounting, I walked out into the darkness. The air was cool...I soaked it in because soon summer weather would bring warm evenings. I walked slowly to the car, clutching the color copies to my chest. I opened the car door and put the copies in the passenger seat. As I walked around the back of the car to the driver's side, I noticed a young couple standing outside of a silver pick-up truck. The man reached into the truck and turned up the radio. The faint sound of a soft fiddle drifted across the blacktop of the parking lot toward me. The perfect music for a night like this. Then the man put his arm around the woman, her head rested on his shoulder. They began to dance under the golden light of the parking lot light.

Slowly they swayed back and forth. He stretched out one of his arms with her hand clasped in his and they started to do fancier steps. His foot overlapping hers. From far away I could see they were smiling and laughing to one another. I could feel the happiness and love of the two strangers across the parking lot.

I felt honored to witness such a sweet moment. These two made me yearn for my love in New Mexico. Soon, he'll be home. Being separated from him this last year taught me so much about love and its importance. I don't want to ever take him for granted. I want to cherish and savor every moment we share together. We can share an impromptu dance. We can share a positive laugh. We can share intimate secrets, letting others only guess what makes us smile.

I will take every moment I can to dance, every moment to laugh, every moment to love and every moment to smile. Isn't that what life is about? Seizing the good moments.