Welcome to M.I.A. (AKA “Marriage is Awesome), the place where I thoroughly piss off my wife by discussing the finer details of our lives together. In this edition, we talk about how clouds and sun are going to lead Carla to kill us both.
Carla and I are very different people. If there ever was a couple who prove the axiom that opposites attract, it is the sensitive, big-feeling, emotional, creative me and rational, analytical, steady, process-driven Carla.
Yet for all the differences we’ve somehow managed to stitch together to make a marriage for the past 25 years, we share in common an overwhelming appreciation for the beauty of the natural world around us.
Keep me away from the outdoors for too long and I get worn out and cranky. I love sinking my feet into the earth and could sit for hours next to a babbling brook journaling, reading or just being.
On Carla’s side, in recent years she’s begun exhibiting a different kind of nature appreciation.
Let me paint a picture for you.
We’re riding along in the car on a beautiful late afternoon. I’m driving. She’s passengering. There is some music on in the background — grunge, since I have control of the playlist. We’re talking. Doesn’t matter about what. It’s probably something to do with one of the kids.
That’s when it happens.
“Ya know, I’m really happy Jonah’s found a great baseba-OH MY GOD! LOOK AT THAT!”
You might think such enthusiasm would be reserved for an Elvis sighting or the sudden emergence of an alien spacecraft from the clouds.
No.
After I regain control of both the vehicle and my heart rate, I follow my wife’s gaze. There, above us, is a wonderous cloud formation with rays of early-evening sun peeking through. And I have to admit: It does, indeed, look beautiful. Yet is it “OH-MY-GOD!-LOOK-AT-THAT!-Give-your-husband-a-heart-attack” beautiful?
To Carla, it is.
We were talking recently about the emergence of Carla’s sky appreciation. Since she and our 13-year-old are the most common travel companions on any given day, he’s the one who gets hit with, “Jonah, look at the sky!” most frequently. Sadly, too often that kid’s head is buried in an iPad instead of letting his mind rest while taking in the world around him, but he does stop and humor his mother and share in some level of her enthusiasm.
I love this about Carla. Her life can be extremely busy. Yet she’s always got her eyes up, whether it’s for a person to talk with or the beauty of creation.
She just needs to tone it down a notch or two when I’m traveling down I-70 at 70 mph — OK, fine, 75… fine 78 mph.
John Agliata is a married father of three boys, Jacob (in heaven), Joey and Jonah. They have a bulldog named Luna and a fish named Greg. Carla and John have been married for 25 years and enjoy giving each other heart attacks.
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