Like many CV-19 housebound inmates, my wife and I have walked the slippery slope between fear and boredom, careening between blood curdling updates and yawn inducing repeats. Without the intervention of some creative alternative, we might end up going stir crazy without the stir.
After considering options, we decided on something guaranteed to shake the paranoia and rust from our brains. We went on a date. But not just any date, a first date. Again. But not just reenacting our first date, but an “acting as if we’d never met before” first date.
We played it to the hilt. My wife curled her hair, and I bedecked dashingly, actually wearing a collared shirt. We kept apart in the afternoon, and at the appointed 5:00pm I rang the front door bell. We both later admitted being nervous. I got more nervous when seeing how beautiful she looked, although she also later admitted the collar gave her goosebumps. We introduced ourselves.
But now what? We could stay home, all dressed up with nowhere to go, or we could go drive into the teeth of the pandemic. OK, we live in Sequim, which is more like Covid’s baby toe, but we did know their wasn’t much open in our shutdown town besides a few spring cherry blossoms.
We ventured out anyway. Able to score some take-out burgers and beer and already intoxicated by our derring do, we decided to dine on the decidedly closed first tee of the Cedars at Dungeness golf course, limboing under the “Do Not Trespass” tape. The beer and burgers tasted good, and the view up the tree-lined first fairway was even more delicious.
Waiting for security to apprehend us at any moment, we continued to get to know each other. Surprisingly, we found the “where did you grow up” questions were even more interesting when we knew the answers. Sometimes the old answers led to new revelations. And thank God, at the end we reaffirmed we were both keepers.
Basking in the afterglow at home later that evening, I began to think the “acting as if we’d never met before” attitude could have some ongoing merit. We think we know our mates; we also know we are just scratching the surface. Maybe having a Beginner’s Mind toward each other could be more than just a way to wade through the virus.
And has this virus done more than just wreak havoc through the land? For those of us seemingly surviving, the answer can be yes. The adventure and romance of our Sequim soiree didn’t happen in a vacuum. Hopefully all of us can find times where putting on our masks can lead to taking them off.
After considering options, we decided on something guaranteed to shake the paranoia and rust from our brains. We went on a date. But not just any date, a first date. Again. But not just reenacting our first date, but an “acting as if we’d never met before” first date.
We played it to the hilt. My wife curled her hair, and I bedecked dashingly, actually wearing a collared shirt. We kept apart in the afternoon, and at the appointed 5:00pm I rang the front door bell. We both later admitted being nervous. I got more nervous when seeing how beautiful she looked, although she also later admitted the collar gave her goosebumps. We introduced ourselves.
But now what? We could stay home, all dressed up with nowhere to go, or we could go drive into the teeth of the pandemic. OK, we live in Sequim, which is more like Covid’s baby toe, but we did know their wasn’t much open in our shutdown town besides a few spring cherry blossoms.
We ventured out anyway. Able to score some take-out burgers and beer and already intoxicated by our derring do, we decided to dine on the decidedly closed first tee of the Cedars at Dungeness golf course, limboing under the “Do Not Trespass” tape. The beer and burgers tasted good, and the view up the tree-lined first fairway was even more delicious.
Waiting for security to apprehend us at any moment, we continued to get to know each other. Surprisingly, we found the “where did you grow up” questions were even more interesting when we knew the answers. Sometimes the old answers led to new revelations. And thank God, at the end we reaffirmed we were both keepers.
Basking in the afterglow at home later that evening, I began to think the “acting as if we’d never met before” attitude could have some ongoing merit. We think we know our mates; we also know we are just scratching the surface. Maybe having a Beginner’s Mind toward each other could be more than just a way to wade through the virus.
And has this virus done more than just wreak havoc through the land? For those of us seemingly surviving, the answer can be yes. The adventure and romance of our Sequim soiree didn’t happen in a vacuum. Hopefully all of us can find times where putting on our masks can lead to taking them off.
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