We are nervous about it. Neither of us have a track record of splitting wood. But there sits in our living room a charcoal black wood stove.

For children, it may seem odd to think about heat when it is still warm enough to walk outside with only a sweater. I have not even rescued our down comforter from hibernation. But anyone old enough for a learner's permit has the impending winter in their peripheral vision. 

 

For teenagers, winter means hockey, and skiing, and composing a Christmas list. But for grown ups it signals an increase in the heating bill, and finding the snow shovel. 

 

Keeping a marriage warm during the frosty times takes forethought. It does not happen automatically any more than wood chops itself, or parkas float down from the attic.

 

My twins are already hinting about new coats for Christmas. Theirs are three years old and a tad snug around the shoulders. But I inwardly promise myself that I will also invest in protecting my marriage, dollar for dollar. If I spring for two new jackets under the tree, there will be matching funds for me and John to get cozy.

 

 

 

Photo by Kat Gatti

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