It has been about eighty days since my husband Dave and I made the decision for him to take a job offer at Lockheed Martin in Prescott, AZ and seventy-three since I drove away to work, leaving him behind, packing his Honda Hybrid for this three day drive away from the life we had had together for nearly twenty-two years. Because of the economy ours had become a commuter marriage. Today he is coming home for a visit and I am as excited as a young girl preparing for a prom.

During the last 73 days it has become more tolerable to have Dave gone, but not easier. By that I mean I do not cry every night, but trying to be two people has been stressful and it is no wonder that my blood pressure went through the roof right after he left. The doctor upped my medication. That helped, but I still have to be two people.

Dave’s time at home has been planned for some time in conjunction with the 90th birthday of his mother and I had been making Honey Do lists for things I hoped he could do. I say had because his fall while hiking last week put the kibosh on that. Now he is returning nearly a week early and injured from his fall. Well, no matter that he cannot tame the backyard, I will get my son to help me with that and no matter that he cannot do the same at our summer home. I am hiring the daughter of a friend to do that.

I thought I would have an entire other week to put the finishing touches on the house inside, but the entire household has pitched in cleaning and sweeping, polishing and dusting. Clean sheets on beds, bathrooms scrubbed, plans for Dave’s favorite food. Plans, too, to get him to Group Health and an orthopedist to see how much damage was done when he fell. I know what the Yavapai Region Medical Center had to say at the time, but will feel better having his knee and shoulder checked out by the people to whom we have entrusted our health care the last 22 years.

What matters to me is that my best friend is going to be around the house again, at least for a little while, and I can fuss over and spoil him and we are that much farther down the road to his permanent return in October of 2013. Right now I intend to wring out every minute of our time together between now and September 12th.