Symbolism

I never quite explained the photo of that pretty little drink, did I?  Well, I chose that photo for my blog header because it’s quite symbolic of a few things.  First off, that’s a delectable Florida Hurricane made with Rum, 151, Coconut, Key Limes, Grenadine, Pineapple and a splash of a few other addictive goodies.  It was the mixed drink that took my Key West, Florida virginity. ha!  That was also the trip that Bobby was supposed to go on alone for business.  Instead, he sneakily called my work 2 days beforehand to get the approval for me to be “out” for a couple days because he had already booked me a ticket to accompany him!  It was also the mini-vacay that just so happened to be right before our 4^th wedding anniversary last year.  I loved every second of his spontaneity sometimes.

Anyway, we sat down to eat burgers after a day of cruising around famous Duval Street, seeing all the sights, people-watching, goofing off and whatnot.  We conversed about nothing in particular, yet everything at once – a typical conversation for us.   We kinda threw around the idea of wanting to move to the Keys someday.  We had lived in Northern Florida before, but never that far South.  Yes, it is hurricane alley down there, but that’s just how we rolled – sporadic, spontaneous, fruity, rebellious – a little like my mixed drink, you might say. 

Well, that conversation also led to other topics, such as the topic of children.  Not the first time it had come up, but definitely one of the most telling in terms of reactions.  The topic itself always seemed to “frighten” him in some way, and each time it came up, he seemed increasingly withdrawn.  I could sense it.  That’s when I confided that I thought there might be something wrong with me, you know, in the “girly” region that might indicate foreshadow our troubles ahead… 

I took a photo of my drink that afternoon and now, I’m glad I did.  As silly as it sounds, it’s probably the most inadvertent, yet most symbolic photograph that I’ve ever taken.  It was mixed with emotion and fear, bitterness, denial, doubt, skepticism, greed, betrayal and love – all of the things that now symbolize the past year of my life.

Our one year anniversary of that trip passed recently and this picture speaks a thousand words to me, every time I look at it.  I’m glad I have the opportunity to share it here and what it means to me. 

Here's another photo of a Key West sunset that I snapped during that trip to leave you with.  Maybe someday I'll have the chance to go back...