Spring

The second in my series of short stories about a couple in various seasons.

 

Early morning sunlight shines through the leaves of the willow tree. I hear birds singing their salutations to the morning sky and smell the hypnotic aroma of coffee coming from downstairs. I reach to pull my new wife into an embrace, but all I feel is emptiness. So I get up, pull on my trousers, and go downstairs into the main room of the house where I smell the wonderful smells of breakfast being cooked on the stove. As I reach the bottom of the stairs I see my wife at the counter cutting up a piece of fruit dressed in a skirt that reaches down to her calves with her favorite blouse. She is humming a familiar song, one we danced to on our wedding day and one that we regularly dance to in our home singing it to each other as we dance and laugh to it. She is barefoot and she is beautiful. Her hair is let down and flows down, cascading over her shoulders down to the small of her back and for just a moment I quietly watch and marvel at this creature of beauty and reflect on how fortunate I am to have even met her. The moment is fleeting though as the old boards in the floor creak and I walk into the room she turns and smiles at me saying

“Good, your up, I was about to come get you. Breakfast is ready.” 

She walks up to me puts her hands around my neck and says “I thought that since it was such a beautiful day we should have breakfast outside by the crick this morning.”

I grin, kiss her lightly on the lips and reply with “That sounds like a wonderful idea my love. Let me get the tray for you and you lead the way.”

With a smile she turned on her heel and swayed out of the back door stopping, putting her hand on the door frame turning and with a wink walking out of the door.  We ate by the crick and enjoyed the gentle spring breeze and the feel of sunlight on the skin after the long winter months and her playful mood was infectious as we sat and talked by the gurgling water. I leaned in to kiss her and she leaned back with a mischievous grin said“Catch me if you can.” 

She got up and turned and skipped around and as I got up and gave chase she ran around the yard and even splashed through the crick and I followed through the cool waters and feeling the sand underfoot and the grass too and the feel of the Sun and Sky against my bare chest and the wind through my hair the day was perfect as I chased her. Our chase led back through the house and into the front yard where I catch up to her pick her up and swing her around and kiss her cheek and her nose and her lips so soft and wonderful against mine own until twirling I trip on a rock and we crash down to earth in a heap on the ground where we laugh raucously, unaware that the town priest was passing the front gate and stopped to watch as we fell. Chuckling he said “My, what behavior for adults to have. Is it this spring air that has turned our adults into children?”

Without missing a beat I say “Oh dear father were not for this wonderful spring air our race would have long ago become extinct.” With a nod the priest replies “Aye. Well spoke my good sir and a somber world too were it not for lovely young couples such as yourselves to bring about happiness to this beautiful place. Well, a good day to ye.” 

And with that he was gone and my wife giggling now as I called out “And a good day to ye too Father.” 

As she went to get up I saw her blouse had come undone and her breasts exposed to the air, so I said “If you look down you’ll see two of the wonders of the earth.” 

She glanced down and laughed harder still and so I helped her up and swept her off her feet and carried her into the house, all the while laughing while she nuzzled her head into my chest and cupped her hand about my neck.