THREE MINUTES FROM HOME

 After walking to the Trax station and transferring to the FrontRunner train, I settled in for some light reading for the 90 minute ride. A cold front continues its march bringing dark clouds, heavy wind, and the beginning of what appears to be a wet evening. The wind blows my skirt against my body, blatantly putting on display the weight I have gained over the years. Ughhhhh...

After winning the battle of opening the door against the wind, I toss my bag into the backseat and grab my Kindle, knowing I will finally finish my book this evening. I am one of the few who arrive this late and the parking lot feels empty. As I await my turn to enter the roadway, I recall I will need to drive my own vehicle to work tomorrow.  This realization causes a reflect action and I take a glance to see how much fuel is in the vehicle.

A sense of warmth fills me when I see the gauge sitting at full. I know the OsmOne has filled it up. I am not even aware of when he took the time to do this. I am filled with the knowledge that he is always there, always thinking of the other, always taking care of me. I feel the weight of being out and about lift from my shoulders as I head toward home. 

My pinky finger flips the ring on my left hand back into position as I approach the stop light. My sense of security increases knowing the warmth of my home and the OsmOne await my arrival. I recall our discussion from the previous night about the arthritis in my hand. The knuckle on my left hand is so large now that I have removed my wedding ring and I glance at the ring currently sitting on my ring finger. It is the ring I bought folllowing Nanna's back surgery (having kids is hard sometimes). The ring is a row of round diamonds that angle upward. On each side of the row of round diamonds, a row of baquette diamonds hold it in place. Nanna will inherit this ring some day. It represent the rods and screws holding her spine straight. And the stop light changes to green.

My wedding ring is on my right hand today and it feels odd. It looks strange from this angle, different from the ring I designed. I return to thoughts about the symbolism of my rings. My wedding ring started out as an unconventional marquise on a wide band. As a younger woman my hands were small and elegant with long fingers. I wanted the wide band because my fingers were so long, something I inherited from my dad. The wide band provides some stability for the irregular shaped diamond. Yet, like me, the diamond is exposed. 

I was exposed until the OsmOne found me, put his arms around me, and held me steady. He still does. Yet the beauty of the misaligned cuts within the diamond seem to be missing a fire. So the OsmOne created a new manner for me to shine by sauldering within me a belief that as long as we were together, we could create our own fire. So we started  a family. One child at a time. A few extras along the way. My hands are now wrinkled from age and dry air and my fingers are definitely larger than when I first placed the ring on my left hand. An explosion of fire sits to the left of the marquise, while the OsmOne's arm gathers us together. They start out tiny and grow, reflecting their journey. Like all children, like most diamonds. Who will I leave this ring to? Will the symbolism within the design be shared along with the ring?

I pull my vehicle into the garage, closing myself into the safety of home and the OsmOne. He greets me with "You look nice! Your skirt, your sweater, and all..." (I know I look like a windblown bag lady, but he never notices). Security, Safety, and Home encircle me and as always, the OsmOne grins.