Listening to Him Breathe.....

Six months ago life changed at our  neighbors home. They had been happily married for over 40 years.  Their children were grown, happy and successful. The grandchildren thought their grandparents were funny, loving at times cool and always very 'country'.  Laughter was easy with their family. Friends wandered in and out of their home, stopping to chat and drink coffee and share secrets.

The  change was subtle, most people did not see the difference at first. The wife did. The first thing she noticed was his breathing. When breathing stops being normal, instead becoming a small struggle, it takes on a new meaning. The adult in each partner had to step up to the plate. This was new for the couple. They always lived life like it would never end. They laughed at their reflections in the mirror, always wondering where the body snatchers were hiding. They teased each other about gray hair and glasses. Aging was easy, nothing to fear.

Their home was like the couple who lived in it, old, cranky at times, always in need of repair yet full of memories and love. It smelled of wood smoke and cinnamon, coffee and dogs. If the walls could talk the stories they would share would be amusing. The couple lived the same life but have two completely different versions of their life together. His and Hers like everything else in their life they shared.

He sleeps more now than usual. The doctor says it is the medicine, the couple hope he is right. For the first time in her life the wife listens to each breath. If he sleeps too long she wakes him up with coffee and a kiss, forever her Prince Charming....in camouflage.

At night he falls to sleep first. She listens and remembers, storing every sound in her heart to be replayed at a later date.