Holding It All Together – Romance After 50

By Amy McCollom
This weekend is our wedding anniversary. John and I will be married for 33 years on March 12th. We have been together for more than half of our lives. We have been together longer than we have not been together, ever. I think the naysayers can give up now; sorry, it lasted. We plan on it continuing to last as well.

Last year for our anniversary, everything was closed, so we had a nice dinner at home to celebrate. In fact, I think we did the same thing the year before. We usually try and at least go out for a steak dinner. Other times we have actually gone on small excursions here or there, but not far.

I see other people’s Facebook posts of fun and beautiful trips they have taken, with music, and dancing, and great looking food and drink and for a minute or two I’m jealous. We looked into going away somewhere really nice for our anniversary, but it just wouldn’t work for us. 

We still have school-aged kids at home, and pets to look after, and church responsibilities. Going away for several days or even the entire weekend just wouldn’t work for us.

We decided that we just wanted to celebrate the two of us in a special way.  Not too far, or too much, or too long. We booked a night at a hotel with a whirlpool tub not far away. Just enough time to make it special, and just special enough for our liking. Here is why we made our simple choice.

1. I get car-sick. Short of going a distance of about 50 miles, I don’t like long car rides. Plus, now that we are older, sitting for very long takes a toll on our backs, knees, and muscles.

2. I am afraid of flying. And it makes me air-sick. If I can’t get there by car, I don’t want to go. And if we have to drive over long bridges, forget about it.

3. No cruises. I’ve seen Titanic, Hunt For Red October, and Jaws; therefore I do not plan to travel in any form of watercraft. Plus I probably get sea-sick.

4. I get homesick. I can stay away from home for about two days before I start wanting to be back home. By the third day, I’m going home, with or without the family, even if I have to walk. That’s how bad it is for me.

5. We don’t like big crowds. We are short and we get claustrophobic in a crowd, especially when everyone is standing and all that we can see are the sweaty backs of shirts of people standing in front of us.  It should be a law that anyone 5’6” and under be allowed to move to the front at all events. 

6. Trying out a whirlpool in the hotel room is a perfect way to see if it helps with our Arthritis. We might be in the market for a whirlpool for the house if it helps with knee and back pain. Try before you buy, you see.

7. A new mattress might be down the road for us. Trying out a Serta would be to our benefit. Also we can check out if we might be interested in HBO.

8. Free breakfast that we don’t have to cook or clean up after. Breakfast in bed would be wonderful.

9. Sleeping without the dog between us. I am not sure who snores louder, the dog or me, but we’re about to find out.

10. Heated pool. After going to water therapy for my dislodged hip and lower back pain, I can practice some of my exercises in the hotel pool. I’ll have to bring my own blow up floaty ring though. 

11. No train horns blasting day and night. We might hear traffic noise, but we’ll bring a fan. 

12. Food of all kinds. We vowed to try some different restaurants and food we have never tried before. I am bringing the Mylanta, and Rolaids, so it’s all good.

13. Conversation time with no interruptions. Between the dog wanting out, the cat wanting held, the phone ringing, text messages, kids running in; there has been very little time for just time to talk to each other. It will be so very nice to be able to finish a thought or sentence without being interrupted. 

Like I mentioned, John and I do not like to spend money. Raising seven kids has taught us to be frugal and to use our money wisely. But there is also one other reason we decided to stay close to home this year to celebrate our anniversary.

I feel things; I know things. I get these “visions” or awake dreams, if you will. Warnings. And although I have been wanting to go to Scott Smith’s Animal Expo up near Chicagoland for several years and it is happening this weekend and would have been a perfect get-away for us, I got a “vision” or feeling that we would be involved in a car accident if we travelled. I have learned to listen to these feelings and to take heed as so many of these visions of mine have come true. I know when God is trying to tell me something. Besides, I’d probably come home with a flying squirrel or something if I went to the animal expo.

There is no right or wrong way to celebrate a special occasion. Trying to keep up with the Jones’s is futile. We can never do it. We have to do what is right for us and our situation. Besides, it’s no one’s business but ours anyway. Naysayers, away with you! Off with your heads! So there.