Friday, April 24, 2009

Solitude

And we are off . . . up north we go.  Life has been a little tense, to say the least, at the Stolen Colon household.  As some of you know, my husband works for one of the big three. (Ha! Isn't that moniker ironic?!)  There is an endlessly vibrating crack berry, cnn's never ending news ticker, and the incessant emails. The stress behind it all has caused less then stellar moods, for both of us.  We are a team,  what effects one of us also effects the other.  (Which is good point to anyone suffering through an illness, it is not just you, who suffers.  Our loved ones often suffer, silently, right along with us.  There is a stress on our caretakers that we commonly don't recognize.)
So, what do we do here when the stress becomes unbearable, pack our bags and head north, to our solace.  No crackberries, no news, no emails . . . just peace (well at least for 2 days).  
This will be Gracie's intro to "The Cottage".  I know she'll love it, it was/is Koda's favorite place on earth. Gracie and I plan to blow by my previously set record of a 1 mile hike.  There is just something about being in the woods.  The crunch of pine needles beneath my feet, the fresh scent, just the solitude of it all, it is the best way to recharge my batteries and to get in touch with myself. 
Also next week is our wedding anniversary.  This weekend, I will reconnect with the person I fell in love with.  It's easy in the hustle and bustle of life to take someone for granted.  We need to remember to occasionally look at each other as if it is the first time we saw each other.  

When I step into the light my arms open wide
When I step into the light my eyes searching wild
Would you not like to be
Sitting on top of the world with your legs hanging free
Would you not like to be ok, ok, ok

When were walking by the water
Splish splash me and you taking a bath
When were walking by the water
Come to my toes to my ankles to my head to my soul
Then I'm blown away
~Lie in Our Graves by DMB

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Have a wonderful 2 days!

-Nick

University of Iowa Meg said...

I love this post. I hope you have a wonderful break. I'm really thinking of you both. And those DMB lyrics- love it! Thanks so much for donating to my walk. I will be doing a blog post about your blog this weekend. I'll do another too later on, since you donated $10 :) You're the best!!

Keri said...

Have a wonderful time!

Christina said...

Awww. I know a little of what you guys are going through. I am keeping my fingers crossed that things will get better. Have fun at the cottage and another stellar picture post!

Anonymous said...

Happy anniversary Scott and Steph.Marriage is hard enough without your illness and the darn BIG THREE.you are both so good for each other I know it will all work out. Love, Mimi

University of Iowa Meg said...

Steph! You're on my blog! Check it out :)

Chloe said...

I found your blog through Meg's blog and all I can say is wow. Wow, wow, wow. You've been through a lot and wow. I'm stunned and blinking and blinking in a very stunned sort of way that you have been able to be so honest and open with everything you've been through. Truly amazing. You seem to handle your condition well, you know- if there is a "good" way to handle it.

And I also can relate well with the team mentality when it comes to marriage and illnesses (and job loss and this stupid economy). On one hand I often think to myself, "Why meeee" when it comes to being relatively young and being sick. For me, there's a lot of guilt that comes with being married and having been diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder so soon after I got married (Honeymoon is over honey, I'm going to be a sick whiny pile of poo all the time now yay!). But in a way I feel fortunate for it, because it's been a good strength builder for my marriage. It's been hard, but I also know that if we can get through this we can get through anything. And after reading most of your blog (which I hope doesn't freak you out since I'm a bit of a stranger!) I get that vibe from you too. It sucks, yes, but what doesn't kill us only makes us stronger. If our husbands can handle us in all of our sick glory, they can handle anything. What a true test for them. Aren't they so lucky? (No sarcasm there, no sirree!). :D

Happy anniversary and I hope you have fun with Gracie at the cottage. My pups are my everything, too. Er, um, I mean MY HUSBAND is my everything. Yes. That is exactly what I meant. But it helps if he is holding out my two pups for me to snuggle with. Hee hee hee. *blinks innocently*

Heather said...

Happy Anniversary! Hope you had a great time!

Aunt Deb and Family said...

Steph and Scott, I hope the cottage was everything you wanted it to be. I know how good I feel when I am there I can only imagine that it would be a great place for you to go and reconnect, rebuild, recoup, and reboost!
Happy Anniversary! Here's to a great, healthy, happy and prosperous year to come.
I love ya, Aunt Deb XOXO