Just Thinkin'.

What a deliciously dreary day!

I love the occasional rainy day, perfect for snuggling down with a book or journal and ruminating on...ruminations?

On the car ride home from the mountains today, I was ruminating on our neighbors.

Yesterday, we had our neighbors, Howard and Sarah Lee, over at the house. I love being around them because they both have such invigorating spirits. They split their time between their house in the NC mountains and their other home in Florida. They are in their eighties and have seen and done so much in their lives and have no plans to stop anytime soon. They're planning a trip to Ireland and have hot-air ballooned over the African savanna. They've cruised around the Arctic glaciers and trekked Greece and Turkey. The list of what they haven't done and seen is probably shorter than the list of all they have accomplished.

Beyond their travels and tales, there is another enviable thing about them. They still hold hands. Sarah Lee still calls Howard sweetheart and when she tells a story, Howard looks at her with total adoration. They have been married ever since Howard was 21 and working in a Florida lumberyard and Sarah Lee was almost 23, working at a university. They have held hands through the loss of a child and through all of their other travels, trials and tribulations. Best of all, they laugh. Whether it's a joke Howard tells, or Sarah Lee poking fun at herself, they tip their heads back and laugh together.

That's what I want. I want someone who, after sixty-something years of marriage, still makes me laugh so hard I have to wipe the tears away; someone who calls me sweetheart; someone who relishes my weirdness, and who stays by my side and holds my hand tightly on the slow walk through life.