Last night was unusual. Instead of the head count being five, it had dropped down to two. Just Iven and I. Sam was out working. Josh was indoor rock climbing and Luke was playing tennis with friends. It was quiet and weird and a little scary - like the whole empty-nest thing that is looming. I know it won't be for quite a few years yet. Luke has yet to finish high school and then there'll be about four years of uni. But I think that in under ten years it'll be just Iven and I sitting looking at each other, wondering what we can talk about.
Last night went a bit like this.
"What's on tv?" (Iven)
"Not a lot - but the tennis is on" (Me trying to persuade him that tennis is an excellent viewing option in the non-ratings period)
"Is that all?" (Iven is not much of a tennis fan or sports fan if the truth be told)
"Have a look in the tv guide and see if there's something you'd rather watch" (I try to look unselfish always knowing that I'll get my own way in the end)
"I think I'll just have an early night"
And with that I was left sitting alone holding the remote control. In this instance I enjoyed it, after all Roger Federer was playing (and winning) and one of the three Aussie's left also had a win. But I can see the day that I'll find it really lonely. Life with kids is busy and noisy and exhausting but I'm really not looking forward to the time when we get off the merry-go-round. I might have to take up night classes. Yoga, french, re-upholstery or trouble-shooting car problems. I've heard that learning new stuff will delay dementia so I guess it's not all bad.
One of my friends is going through that now- her youngest left home a year ago. Although they have more freedom to travel, etc., they are trying to decide what's next. I have a feeling that you'll find ways to keep things interesting when that time comes.
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