Energized

She is an explosion of energy. She is out of bed in the shower getting dressed brushing her hair and out of the door allatonce. With me as her useless companion, she has too much on her plate each and every day. And so she must be in ready-to-go mode from the moment her eyes open. This morning, dressed in enough layers to ward off the coming of the Ice Age, she flew down the steps and headed to the mountain, about to embrace the brisk fall weather while sitting suspended in air for an extended period of time. It is only then, perched high above the ground on a ski lift, and waiting for the "faux" rescue that occurs annually as part of her ski patrol refresher, that Joanne will be compelled to stop moving.

Of course, there is the other side of that equation. The yin to this yang  occurs, as regularly as day meets the night.. The train loses its steam, the fastball becomes an "Eephus" pitch, the balloon deflates. And bedtime arrives, early and all at once.

But it is the continuous force of her being that is so compelling. This is not a pitcher who takes a day off, who coasts during the middle of the season and gets ready to turn it on in the playoffs. Over the course of almost 35 years, I have not witnessed a single slow down, or work stoppage. Neither rain, sleet, snow, nor the unrelenting aggravation of having an unequal partner, neither mental fatigue or troubles that are part of the human experience, have caused a change in the game plan. Every day, she is who she is as she knows no other way.

I have not always understood or appreciated this. Sometimes, I have bridled at the intensity. My laziness stands in stark contrast. As I brush around the edges of my tasks, I often wonder why I do not receive constant kudos for a job badly done. At least, I say to myself, I did something. And so, this is the life my wife has signed up for, willingly or not. And the one she accepts, each and every day.

And tomorrow will be no different.  She will do a thousand little things and then a thousand more. She will put her foot to the accelerator and push through everything that confronts her. And she will go and go. Until she can go no more.