Freeze the day

JG and I belong to a small Bible study group at our church made up of a few couples and a few singles, ranging from our age to our parents’ ages.  We sarcastically call ourselves “the misfits,” and it’s always nice to come back together after the summer break.

Before our meeting on Sunday afternoon, the leader sent out a few questions to ponder in advance, and one of them was to think of a moment in our lives that we’d like to freeze, so we could still enjoy it.  We went around the room, sharing stories like playing in a pool with children, seeing a wild moose on a hike, a perfect vacation at the shore, and a multi-generational gathering.

JG’s contribution was the car ride home from the airport after our honeymoon.  He said, “We didn’t have a plane to catch, we were just going to our apartment, RA didn’t have to work the next day.  It was really great.”

He and I didn’t compare notes before the group discussion.  If I were asked what I remembered from that car ride, it’s that we took a shared shuttle from the airport and circled around one intersection for what seemed like an interminable period, trying to find the entrance to a Red Roof Inn for a fellow passenger.  I was tired from the flights that day, I was not looking forward to going back to work, and worst of all, our lovely, tropical vacation was over.  I had banked my vacation days to take it, and the next break was a long time coming.  Driving around and around that elusive Red Roof Inn was hardly what I’d preserve for safekeeping, but JG remembers it fondly.  It’s funny how that works.

The memory I would save would be the car ride home from our wedding reception.  The cousins had adorned the Subaru with glass paint, streamers, and balloons, and only the driver’s and passenger seats were free of wedding gifts.  JG and I ran through a flurry of bubbles, exchanged one last kiss for the photographers, hopped in the car, and zoomed away.  It was a beautiful day to drive along that windy country road toward home, with the car shedding its decorations little by little.  We had a whole day to ourselves before we left for the honeymoon, and a friend had packed leftovers from the reception of barbecue chicken and potato salad for dinner that night.  There was nothing to do but go home and relish in our newborn married state.  I was all light and happiness and hope.

Yes, let’s freeze that for the future, please.