Happy Jennifer
A couple weeks ago at the annual gathering of Stoltzfuses, an interruption in the flow of time-space where life slows to the speed of the river flowing greenly through Slate Run, Uncle Al (Huyard that is) said “You know sometimes I look at Rose and wonder what in the world she is doing with me,” (or something to that effect) then he turned to me “Do you ever feel the same way?” To which I blithely chuckled and stupidly said, “Well not when I look at Rose.” Al said, “Well I hope not, or we might have to have a talk.”
Well, we were having a talk, mostly for the benefit of Steve Horst who was standing there thinking about marrying his girfriend Bethany (which he might be doing this Saturday if I remember correctly). I blame my sleep-addled brain for my dim-witted engagement in the conversation at that moment, but thinking about it later, there are times when I look at Jennifer and wonder what in the world she was thinking when she picked me. As my long time friend Josh Schlabach once told me with regards to our respective wives, “It’s so strange that they let us drool all over them, and they act like they like it.” It is strange. So strange.
Tonight Jennifer and I went to a nice restaurant and ate nice food in our nice neighborhood. She ending her meal with a kalamata olive and a bit of hummus and grinning at the obvious glee I felt toward my apple and cinnamon crepe. We talked about how we decided to like each other, how much we have changed since we got a hold of each other, and how impossibly different our lives would be without each others presence. Jennifer told me that she just heard a story on the radio about what makes for a happy marriage. According to psychotherapists at the University of Iowa, couples in which the husbands are the fastest and most enthusiastic in giving in to their wives demands are by far the happiest. She thought that made women seem like “spoiled brats.” Maybe so. But I feel pretty spoiled too, often surrounded by a world of underprivileged men and women starved for her kind of affection.
Not just everyone can lie around on a tan couch and sing each other barely remembered snippets of “contemporary” Christian songs from the 90s and be appreciated late into a lazy Saturday night. Real gems like Sandi Patty and Wayne Watson duets, arias by Twila Paris, or ‘gasp’ country songs like “Don’t Tell My Heart, My Achy Breaky Heart.” Jennifer is the most entertaining person I know. I miss her when she’s gone; bug her incessantly when she is around. I love her so much, of course I’ll enthusiastically do whatever she demands (or talk her into demanding something else, if she’s acting crazy).
Uncle Al is right, it is strange that the women we love want to be with us. But I’m glad they do, I can’t imagine a better way to live. If staying in love, means doing what they want I can’t say that I mind all that much.
Hear the radio program here: Happy Marriage
A couple weeks ago at the annual gathering of Stoltzfuses, an interruption in the flow of time-space where life slows to the speed of the river flowing greenly through Slate Run, Uncle Al (Huyard that is) said “You know sometimes I look at Rose and wonder what in the world she is doing with me,” (or something to that effect) then he turned to me “Do you ever feel the same way?” To which I blithely chuckled and stupidly said, “Well not when I look at Rose.” Al said, “Well I hope not, or we might have to have a talk.”
Well, we were having a talk, mostly for the benefit of Steve Horst who was standing there thinking about marrying his girfriend Bethany (which he might be doing this Saturday if I remember correctly). I blame my sleep-addled brain for my dim-witted engagement in the conversation at that moment, but thinking about it later, there are times when I look at Jennifer and wonder what in the world she was thinking when she picked me. As my long time friend Josh Schlabach once told me with regards to our respective wives, “It’s so strange that they let us drool all over them, and they act like they like it.” It is strange. So strange.
Tonight Jennifer and I went to a nice restaurant and ate nice food in our nice neighborhood. She ending her meal with a kalamata olive and a bit of hummus and grinning at the obvious glee I felt toward my apple and cinnamon crepe. We talked about how we decided to like each other, how much we have changed since we got a hold of each other, and how impossibly different our lives would be without each others presence. Jennifer told me that she just heard a story on the radio about what makes for a happy marriage. According to psychotherapists at the University of Iowa, couples in which the husbands are the fastest and most enthusiastic in giving in to their wives demands are by far the happiest. She thought that made women seem like “spoiled brats.” Maybe so. But I feel pretty spoiled too, often surrounded by a world of underprivileged men and women starved for her kind of affection.
Not just everyone can lie around on a tan couch and sing each other barely remembered snippets of “contemporary” Christian songs from the 90s and be appreciated late into a lazy Saturday night. Real gems like Sandi Patty and Wayne Watson duets, arias by Twila Paris, or ‘gasp’ country songs like “Don’t Tell My Heart, My Achy Breaky Heart.” Jennifer is the most entertaining person I know. I miss her when she’s gone; bug her incessantly when she is around. I love her so much, of course I’ll enthusiastically do whatever she demands (or talk her into demanding something else, if she’s acting crazy).
Uncle Al is right, it is strange that the women we love want to be with us. But I’m glad they do, I can’t imagine a better way to live. If staying in love, means doing what they want I can’t say that I mind all that much.
Hear the radio program here: Happy Marriage
posted by Darren Byler at 1:25 AM
2 Comments:
that was nice. i had to smile at my josh's comment. :)
how sweet! it's nice u r so agreeable, darren.
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