They say love covers a multitude of sins. Though I have often wondered who they are and how everybody else knows who they are but cant identify any of them is a continuing question crawling along the lines between light and shadow in my skull. Nonetheless…for all that love does and is; it is common ground. With a commitment to this common ground, other decisions and issues pale to its statue. In our deepest love, we find ourselves lain naked before someone whom we trust not to destroy us and love not to hate us. I have watched issues divide people every since I was the youngest of children; even when people no longer remembered why they were at odds. Hence, the oldest of friends is worth my personal ego sacrifice to continue a prolonged story of endurance.
Old friends are some of the very best. Old friends have more credibility because you know that they know the good and the bad and they remain. That is something I value. The same is true for great marriages and I suppose most other unions / relationships. Old friends also understand their own lack of blamelessness, increasing the commitment from both ends to endure beyond the safety of comfort and venture into the forest without weapons drawn. They always say, “dance with the one you brung,” and that’s just good policy, if not law. I always look forward to meeting some groovy old couple on every trip we take. It’s easy to tell when two people like each other, as well as love each other. The twinkle in her eyes when she looks at him; the grin in his smile when he winks at her are marks of this enduring story that typically is or has been a never-ending adventure. I love to hear the stories of how old couples got together. One always has the facts and the other the dates and details — and the devil is always in the details.
Groovy old couples are fantastic people. Some say nobody else would put up with either of them so they stay together. I don’t discredit that statement; but I would be inclined to add that perhaps they are so intuned to each other, anything else would be out of order. The other common factor of groovy old couples seems to be great sex. I have heard it come up more than once. One is typically grinning and nodding and the other is all-too-happy to use comical euphamisum to tell some funny story. We were at an IMAX in Chattanooga by the aquarium when this couple who must have been in there late 70’s sat behind us. Their snickering gained our attention; their age earned our shock. We immediately began conversating about happiness and marriage and how long and how they met. Of course, he comes out with be careful, she’s a screamer. After a sock in the arm from her and our laughters, we watched a great show on Creatures of the Deep…no pun intended. Happiness is a contagious thing. It’s also hard to hide.
Becoming a groovy old couple has its costs. Love, patience, trust, respect, gentleness, understanding, endurance, kisses, holding hands, sacrifice, selflessness, selfishness, forgiveness, smiles, tears and embraces are all part of the recipe. A coin is incomplete without a heads or a tails. Without bread on both sides, is it really a sandwich? I am looking forward to becoming a groovy old couple. I don’t mind and am certainly not offended by the marks of age. That’s reality. I don’t care about looking good in the coffin. I prefer a restored classic to a hot new corvette. Other cars are only for glancing, my classic is just for me. To infinity and beyond!
1 comment:
'I don’t care about looking good in the coffin,'my new favorite quote! A hearty welcome back to Maximus, who has returned with a vengeance...
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