Melodie’s Teacher Stories: The Restaurant

The restaurant had dim, romantic lighting. My new husband and I sat close and we each ordered the same items from the menu: steamy vegetable soup, broccoli-cheese lasagna and apple strudel.

Ever since we had met two years previously, we found that we liked the same types of food and chose the same kinds of friends. We both loved to ride our bikes to college to be thrifty and healthy. We loved to walk in nature and often chose to wear bright clean colors of spring.

We were twins.

Our conversation in the restaurant meandered though our newly married life and our newly rented apartment in San Diego, where we were both doing our M.A.’s.

All through the meal, my eyes wandered over several nature photos on the wall and caressed the soft, draped folds of silky blue curtains. They were so calming and just what we needed to make our apartment feel like a home.

There was love in the air as three hours floated dreamily by.

We walked outside and got into our car, heading for our apartment.  I remarked about the lovely photographs and luxurious curtains which I had admired all evening.

Didn’t he agree that we could decorate our apartment with equally attractive photos and lovely curtains?

My husband stopped the car at a light, turned to me and said that he hadn’t seen any photos or curtains.

What was I even talking about?

Was he joking or blind? How could he not see what was so obvious? What had he been doing for three hours?

Whom did I marry?

He was admonished, agreeing guiltily that he hadn’t seen these things at all. In fact, while we were dining and conversing, he admitted that he had been engrossed in listening to the Mozart and Beethoven on the restaurant’s speakers.

Didn’t I agree with the good choice of music for such a romantic evening?

I stared back in the dark of the car. What music? What Mozart and Beethoven?

I had not heard any music for the entire three hours.

It was then that we first began to suspect

that in some fundamental ways,

we were very, very different.

Image Credits

p.2  Broccoli lasagne:  http://livesimply.me/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/spinach-lasagna-roll-ups-9954-2-683×1024.jpg

p.4 Twin dodo birds:                                                                                           https://assets.rbl.ms/338727/980x.jpg

p.6 Poster over couch:                                                 http://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/tkoAAOSwnipWWzlm/s-l1600.jpg

p. 8 Car:                                                        http://oldcarandtruckpictures.com/VW/1972_VW-Interior-Oct4-2008c.jpg

p. 10 Traffic light by Gaya Singh:  http://www.fakingnews.firstpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/RED-233×300.jpg

p. 12 Mole:                                                                                  https://i.ytimg.com/vi/vO2qaTFfZFs/maxresdefault.jpg

p. 14 Listening to music:                      http://images.wisegeek.com/red-haired-man-smiling-while-listening-to-music.jpg

p.16 Tiny Tarsier:                 http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2012/06/21/article-0-13B66FC6000005DC-542_634x778.jpg

p. 18: Cat & Bird:                                                                                http://i.ytimg.com/vi/ITLHd5nWi1c/hqdefault.jpg