Love, Aging, And Everything In Between

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(Photo credits: Flickr)

We are special species. The human race is resilient in the face of adversity, we come up with interesting concepts about love, aging, and survival. I love the way Jamais Cascio puts it, ”resilience is all about being able to overcome the unexpected. Sustainability is about survival. The goal of resilience is to thrive.”

I couldn’t agree more. We can thrive when all hopes seem lost, the secret to an ageless, carefree life is contentment with who you are. People with disembodied image of themselves tend to continually conflicts with life.

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(Lines of wisdom)

When everything seems to go pear-shaped, humanity always has a way of making things better. Yes, sometimes, we fail dismally, however, that has never stopped humanity. I believe in humanity, I believe in love and I am a forever optimist that things can always get better.

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(I love The Hope In Her Eyes)

Valentine shouldn’t be about love only, I reckon it should also be about hope, faith, and perseverance.

Hope for the parents of a six-year-old girl afflicted with cancer that she would get better with the right treatment, faith that a job seeker would get a befitting job and his life wouldn’t be a constant struggle, and perseverance in the face of overwhelming defeat. Never giving up because there would be a time, when a breakthrough actually looms beside defeat.

22055347934_0ca6270d9a_o (2) (I love his carefree smile)

I believe in humanity, do you?

I’ll leave you guys with this simple quote by Kushandwizdom, ”faith makes all things possible, hope makes all things work and love makes all things beautiful.”

I hope your lives would be filled with faith, hope, and love.

Have a wonderful Valentine. 🙂

Much love always!
🙂

Avanlanche: The Fall…

Feb14

(Photo credit: Krappweis)

The air was crisp and clean, the sky blue and clear. Amanda inhaled deeply, imagining the stress leaving her body. She watched her husband from the corner of her eyes: the sharp, well-shaped jaws, the bushy eyebrows, and the serious expression almost drew a chuckle but she clamped down on it.

It was their last day in Switzerland and against all odds, she had truly enjoyed herself. Now she had to confront her husband and tell him the real reason she wanted a divorce. They walked towards their cabin in silence as Amanda cleared her throat noisily. Pete gave her a quick sideways glance and opened the door.

Amanda strolled towards the sofa and sank into it, while Pete removed his gloves and boots.

‘I slept with Alex!’

Pete stood still like a statue, even the sweat on his brows froze in disbelief. He ground his teeth and approached his wife menacingly. Alex had been his friend from childhood. They were practically brothers, what a fool I’d been! He thought in anger but something held him in check, he didn’t believe it.

‘When?’ He mouthed the words and knelt in front of his wife, his eyes were incredibly dry and he looked very calm.

‘Three months ago…’ she closed her eyes briefly, ‘the night we had a fight on the phone.’

‘Where?’

‘I called him and he came over to the house.’ Amanda involuntarily put her hand to her mouth as if she’d said too much.

‘We made up when I got back Amanda!’ Pete said slowly, strangely, his anger had dissipated.

‘I know…’ and she began to cry, ‘for what’s worth, I had no recollection of it as such. I was wasted, very drunk.’

Pete made up his mind there and then to fight for his marriage but Amanda was not finished.

‘Three weeks later I found out I was pregnant.’

That was when Pete lost it. He picked Amanda up effortlessly and almost hurled her against the wall, she wailed on his shirt, expecting the worse, then like a China plate, he put her down gently. He hurriedly put his gloves on, wore his shoes and rushed out of the cabin.

Two hours later, there was a knock on the door, Amanda hurriedly opened it, worried sick. Standing calmly at the door were two Swiss officers, their expressions looked grim. Amanda crumpled to the floor in a faint…

………………….

NP: It wasn’t all bad news though! 🙂 Pete was trapped in an avalanche but luckily, he’d survived. Amanda gave birth to twin sons… Well, when she did the DNA paternity test, Pete was the father of her sons. Their marriage survived. Pete quit his job in the City, and now had his own company. They went through months of counselling and the last time I spoke to Pete, he sounded optimistic, but he confessed that it was hard. However, he loves his wife, he’d forgiven her and was determined to give their marriage a chance to heal.

Relationships are not easy, Amanda and Pete had made up their mind to fight for their marriage and I wish them the best. To all my friends all over the world, I won’t wish you love because today is Valentine, I’m wishing you love all year round. May your hearts find peace and joy!

Much love, always!

🙂

Avalanche

Feb8

(Photo Credit: Flickr)

Pete stared at the papers in his hands and his blood froze.

Amanda, his wife of five years wanted a divorce, what a way to start the year! He sat down wearily on the bed as his mind raced to the red-head beauty who bumped into him at Mile End underground station in London – she had apologised profusely and they got talking. Within weeks, their romance blossomed. As an Investment Banker, Pete had little time to woo her but Amanda more or less took control of his life.

Within two years, they were married, and his parents were delighted. A year after marriage, Amanda was desperate for a child, he wasn’t that bothered. After all, he’s always holed up at his office in the City, slaving away to make as much money as he could. They hardly spend time together and deep down, he knew it could be the reason she wanted out. They love each other, why would Amanda think divorcing him would make her life better? The noise of his phone disrupted his reminiscing and he grunted before picking it up from the bedside table.

‘Yeah,’ Pete drawled and listened, then clicked it shut. Switzerland. He’d totally forgotten about the holiday he’d pre booked weeks earlier. Like a slow motion, hope began a painful ascent in his mind. Maybe, just maybe, time away from their usual life in London would spice things up a bit, and talk of divorce would disappear.

Half an hour later, Amanda strolled into the room, avoiding any eye contacts.

‘Shouldn’t we at least talk about this?’ Pete asked quietly, waving the papers in his hands. He couldn’t stop staring at his wife, whose hourglass figure never ceased to amaze him.

‘We’ll talk when we get to Switzerland,’ she replied. Pete laughed and said lightly, ‘Women and holidays!’

But there was something different about her. He stood up and pulled her into his arms, he was half expecting her to resist but she didn’t.

‘Is this what you want honey?’ he mumbled into her hair, rocking her as he would a day old baby.

Amanda swallowed hard, then closed her eyes. How could she back track now after realising the root of their problems? Divorce was the only way out, or so she thought…

………

NP: I was supposed to have posted this on Thursday but I was extremely busy, I would have to make this a two or three-part series. Amanda and Pete are a couple whose story touched me deeply. It’s also a true story, but as usual, I would change their names to protect their identity and add elements of fiction to it as well. I would post the next part sometimes next week, at least before Valentine’s day. Martin Luther said something that touched me: ‘There is no more lovely, friendly and charming relationship, communion or company than a good marriage.’

Call me a traditionalist, but my parents have been married for almost fifty years, they had their good, bad, and excellent times but they stuck together. Now I think they’re best of friends.

I hope you would have a peaceful, restful and enjoyable week. I intend to!

Much love, always! 🙂

The Beast

Feb3

(Photo Credit: Flickr)

Laura had trouble sleeping, she watched enviously as her husband slept soundly like a baby. She closed her eyes and willed her body to relax, fifteen minutes later, it worked, and she drifted off into a fitful sleep. Claps of thunder woke her up hours later, reluctantly, she opened her eyes and listened as flashes of light competed in a show of power. However, amidst the thunderous symphony, she also detected a faint but familiar sound, she listened and froze with fright when she realised it was the voice of Anna, her fourteen year old daughter.

She turned to touch her husband, but he wasn’t there. Panicking, she leapt out of bed and slowly crept down the stairs. Someone was in her home, a stranger. Her heart in her mouth, she moved stealthily, afraid to alert the intruder. By now, Anna was howling, Laura threw caution to the wind and breezed into the kitchen, grabbed a large knife and dashed into her daughter’s room.

Ashley, her husband of eighteen mouths was lying on top of her daughter, naked waist down. Anna stopped crying when she saw her mother and Laura felt alien, as she seemed to move out of her body… Swiftly, she raised the knife above her head.

………..

Two years later, Anna walked briskly down a hallway, her heart beating with love. It was Valentines Day, and, the love of her life is in prison. Many people called her mother a beast, but she knew that it was her Step-father who was the real beast. He had repeatedly raped her, threatening to kill her mother if she uttered a single word to a living soul. As far as Anna was concerned, the death of Ashley was a welcome relief. Her mother would be out in a couple of years, and with her mother by her side, life couldn’t be better. They would live happily ever after!

………….

NP: I am a realistic writer, if you’ve read any of my books, you should know by now that I’m not afraid to tackle difficult subjects, and this was a very difficult topic for me to write. Many women are trapped in abusive relationships, where their partners are raping or had raped their daughters – it’s an ugly scenario. But it could be stopped: there are warning signs really, when your partner is unduly interested in your daughter, that leery, lustful look is often too glaring to hide, (mind you, not all Step-fathers are Ashley!) Left for me, I wish all marriages ended with ‘the happily ever after theme,’ but that would be living in a fairy tale world. Even though I don’t support what Laura did, the beast in some people cannot be tamed, they can only be stopped!

………….

Where there are beasts, there are also saints. Like Hugh Mackay would say: ‘ Nothing is perfect. Life is messy. Relationships are complex. Outcomes are uncertain. People are irrational.’

I hope you’ll all have a pleasant week. I’ll be back on Thursday with a very interesting topic in my ‘happily ever after theme!’

Much love, always!

🙂 🙂