She rolls over and feels a cold space. Her heart skips a beat. Her bed hasn’t been empty for months now. Where is he? What’s happened?
She hears his voice downstairs and relief fills her heart. His being home every day was the hardest transition of this pandemic life. They didn’t lose much, except his commute. He saw it as gaining time at home. She saw it as a loss of control. She used to be in charge during the day. With him at home, they now have to share.
Over time they’ve learned to talk about their feelings. Sadness over what they’ve lost—her book club and time alone, his commute and city bike rides, their Sunday mornings at church. Gratefulness too—more family time, more rest time, challenges that enable them to grow. They listen to each other more carefully. With more humility.
They’ve learned to respect each other’s dreams. He empowered her to write. She empowered him to play. They’ve learned to be together all the time, and how to take breaks, and that breaks are important.
She’s not sure how many more months they’ll have of this time together. Eventually, the world will go back to how it once was. He’ll wake up early to catch the train, making her coffee and leaving it in a travel mug on the counter before gently kissing her goodbye. He’ll lock up his bike and hop on the train and she’ll stay snug in bed.
One day the world will return to normal and they’ll miss this all-together time. They’ll look back on these days with memories of happiness and bliss. They’ll remember the challenges and celebrate how their love grew.
This post is part of a blog hop with Exhale—an online community of women pursuing creativity alongside motherhood, led by the writing team behind Coffee + Crumbs. Click here to view the next post in this series "280 Words".
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