My Flame

IMG_3673I suppose this is how I see him.  Exactly.  Rugged, capable beauty in a wild shower of flame and sparks.  Or perhaps this is my perspective of us; the earnest but volatile nature of who we are independently and corporately.  We are a pair of glorious, clashing and blending flames.

We just spent a full week together, which is something that NEVER happens during the fire season.  I came home from Alaska and we galloped to Pocatello to close on our house, pack up our life and stuff it in a storage unit.  We sold or gave away over half of what we owned and once the money was in the bank from the sale of our home, we drove and fished our way across Idaho until we parted ways in Spokane.  He headed back to Winthrop and work while I buzzed over to Montana to stage for a backcountry trip.  When we crossed over the Idaho-Washington state line we looked over at each other and said, “We have to get back.  We have to get back to Idaho.

I miss him.  I miss dreaming aloud with him.  I miss the tangible flame that has burned between us for over 11 years now.  Godspeed, babe (and soft landings), until our soul bones rest side by side once more.

On The Topic of RW

[inside the Airstream, both 15 piece endcaps are up and riveted, now more than half the interior is walled]

Can I take a moment to tell you something?  Robert is incredible.  Not only is he an elite wild land firefighter (and very humble about that fact), but he can pretty much build anything, he’s great at the art of design and his craftsmanship is wonderful and detail oriented.  He loves to garden and is generally very gifted at nurturing and raising animals and plants.  He used to be a fish biologist and it was a pleasure to watch him raise and research the threatened and endangered fish he worked with and become an expert on the topic.  Watching him run a backhoe is like going to the ballet — he performs the most delicate little scoops and pivots you’ve ever seen.  He is skilled at the domestic arts and thinks nothing of whipping up a chocolate cake from scratch at 9PM on a Friday night.  He’s a skilled and ethical sportsman.  He makes careful, patient shots at big game and is always compassionate and quick to end the suffering of an animal — which takes courage.  He is an incredible dog trainer.  Farley hunts at a master hunter level, I know that Tater Tot will too.  I fell in love with him (the first time) when I watched him fly fish in New Zealand shortly after we met — his back-cast never gets snaggled on trees or brush and his passion for trout is unparalleled and contagious.  He can always start a fire when we need it most.  I love the way his eyes squint when he looks over to the horizon.  When he off-roads in our truck, he is sensible and doesn’t tend to cowboy around.  He believes in taking care of things.  Pears are his favorite fruit.  He can burn through a pair of running shoes in two months and has been known to ruin a pair of double kneed Carhartts in just three short weeks.  I like the way his hands look when we’re done bird hunting and he empties his shotgun chamber of shells.  He is mostly patient and always kind.  He has a faint, very faint sort of…lisp.  He dances like a countrified version of Michael Jackson, you’d have to see it to believe it.  Our friends always come to him for advice, he gives it thoughtfully and respectfully.  He is a terrifying debate opponent and argues logically and intelligently.  Children adore him.  He is consistent in his beliefs and is respected for his faith.  He is a best friend to all who meet him and know him.  He does our taxes.  He is honest.  He likes Coors Light.  Our friends say they wish he would run for president of the USA but I don’t ever want to be the First Lady.  His smile is crooked and his eyelashes are like feathers.  He likes big country, clear water, volcanic canyon lands and Idaho.  The Northern Sierra Nevada of California raised him.  He’s an all American boy.  He cares for me.  He’s the best man I have ever met.  I just thought you should know.