Sleeping With A Man

We all love our husbands. We do. I love my husband more than anyone can imagine. But ladies, raise your hand if maybe sometimes - even if it's just every once in a while - you wish you could have your bed ALL. TO. YOURSELF. I mean really - the marriage bed is a beautiful thing, but don't you ever just wish that heat-radiating, snoring, teeth-grinding, cover-snatching man would go sleep on the couch?? Sure, spooning is great, until he falls asleep (which he inevitably will within 5 minutes) and gets real heavy and HOT. And he has those little muscle-spasm twitches that men have when they're falling asleep and that hand that's lovingly resting on your hip (or elsewhere) suddenly SQUEEZES and scares the bejeezus out of you! And the snoring - oh, the snoring! Don't even get me started!

So as I'm lying in bed last night, thinking of how lovely it would be to have my bed to myself for an entire night, I doze off and have a bad dream. And when I waken, I reach out to touch Hubby - just to know that he's there. And just putting my hand on his big, heavy, warm, sleeping body is a comfort. He's there. He's always there. When I'm having a bad day, I can pick up the phone and he's there. When tragedy strikes and all I can do is cry, he's there. When I'm scared, worried, lonely....he's there. And when joy overflows from my heart and I'm giddy happy and want to celebrate....he's there.

Seventeen years ago, when I was feeling trapped in an abusive marriage to a mean drunk, he was there.

Through all the ups and downs of our marriage - and let me tell you, there have been many - he was there.

When my family needs him, he's there.

When our children need him, he's there.

A few years ago, Hubby broke his leg when he flipped an ATV. But in treating his broken leg, a much bigger, scarier problem was discovered - his blood pressure was stroke-level high. As they were prepping him for surgery on his leg, the nurses were calling in doctors left and right and they told us they couldn't even think about putting him under for surgery or he would surely stroke out and possibly die. I was terrified, and for the first time since I've known him I realized that something could happen and he wouldn't be there anymore.

He's fine now. With medication, his blood pressure is under control and his heart is healthy. But I'll never forget that feeling of fear that I might lose him.

So why, oh why would I ever not want him to be there beside me? Yes, he snores. He tosses and turns and gets the covers all wadded up sometimes. He takes up more than his half of the bed. But he's there. I can reach out for him, and he's always there. And I wouldn't trade that for anything in the world.