Alone in the Wild (again)

Derek just returned from a conference in Rotterdam on Saturday.  It was so great to have him home. He'd been gone eight days.   Isn't it amazing how quickly you can get used to having someone around?  How can it be that I am already having difficulty remembering what it was like to live without him close enough to touch?  How can it be that he already feels like home to me?

From early April to the end of June, we "romanced" each other virtually... through email, text and the occasional long distance phone conversation.   We then had 15 days to get to know each other "live".  For two of those days, we were officially "dating" and another two days, we were engaged. He returned to South Africa and then "real life" gave way to "virtual life" again...  more email, more texting and more frequent long distance conversations during three months of whirlwind wedding planning.    After all that time apart, I was understandably pretty darn excited to actually be in the same time zone as my husband.  Derek and I joke that he had to marry me so that he could date me.  And so we moved to Africa, he returned to work and on evenings and weekends, we "date".  And I've gotta say,  real life beats virtual life's butt every time!

Derek's work involves a significant amount of travel and we knew that we'd only have three weeks together before he'd be off to the Netherlands.  So we were back to virtual life again.  Although it was strange being here without him,  I was well taken care of.  Derek has an amazing network of friends who took me under their wings and made sure I was not alone for long.  And he was always as close as an email or text.   However, email and text have lost a bit of their charm  now that I know how good reality is!   I missed him terribly.  The days were full, but time dragged in spite of that and I was literally counting the hours until he walked through the door.

And then, quite unexpectedly, an urgent situation came up at a factory in Nigeria and Derek was given the directive to get there as soon as possible.  So, we had 2 days together and this morning he was off again.  Barring any unforeseen events, he should be home this Saturday.  When he gets back, we will have been married for 42 days, but will only been together for 30 days of that time.   Being home without Derek isn't like being home at all.  He IS my home.  When he is gone, I am just alone in a house and no amount of email, texting, and phone calls is enough anymore.

An English proverb says, "Absence sharpens love, presence strengthens it."  I know this to be true already.