We just got home from work and my husband went off to the driving range. Years ago when he was first bitten by the golf bug, I would have been really upset by this. For awhile he was absolutely obsessed about golf - watched golf on TV, read golf magazines, practiced his swing with an imaginary club in front of the tv while watching tournaments....OBSESSED!
To this very day, I don't get it. Playing 18 holes of golf can take anywhere from 4 to 6 hours out of a day. Now, you should really warm up before you start playing so add another hour. To reach the nice golf courses that aren't right around the corner could take another hour or more to get there and it's always better to start early in the day. So maybe you get up at 5 am ON A WEEKEND...ON PURPOSE!! At the end of the round, the guys are usually pretty hungry, so you gotta stop for lunch at the clubhouse and talk about how great/awful you played...then you gotta drive back home. Forget 4 to 6 hours, sometimes it's an all day proposition sometimes.
I used to resent the fact that Ron would rather spend the day hitting and chasing a little white ball around a golf course all day than to be with me 24/7. I was jealous of those golf clubs...What I failed to acknowledge at the time was that this was his stress relief, his hobby and yes, his obsession. While he was on those beautiful green courses, he was getting some exercise while NOT thinking about work or anything that might be bothering him. He doesn't fool around, drink or gamble. Besides having an opinion about EVERYTHING, telling really awful jokes at inappropriate times (or really inappropriate jokes at awful times) and hogging the remote, he really is a great guy. I'm ashamed of myself for ever having given him a hard time about playing golf and the enjoyment that he got of it.
My husband is a hardworking man who has really been taking care of me since we were 17 years old. He has always put my needs before his own. He's a good dad to our daughters, even though he struggles to be open to them and let them see his vulnerable side. He's a patient teacher to all of us. Yes, he has occasional explosions, but never when or why you'd think he would have them. Case in point - all our cars have been scraped, dinged and even had pieces knocked off of them thanks to our daughters - he's never yelled at them about the damage to any of the cars. For the 10 years that my mom lived with us he was the lone guy living in a house with 5 women and our 2 female dogs! Incredibly, he didn't lose his mind thanks, in part, to golf!
Now that the girls are all gone, you'd think he'd be on the golf course all the time. The truth is that I don't remember the last time he went and played. On the weekends, he pays the bills, does chores around the house (recently, he replaced our disposal - ALL BY HIMSELF!), takes me to the movies, and is the best Buddy in the world to a sweet 3 year old Baby Hurricane. He will drop everything to drive down to Santa Barbara if the girls need us for the smallest reason. And whenever we are there with them, he always makes sure that the car is in good running order and that they have everything they need.
I think he's earned some time on his beautiful green golf course, cussin' with his buddies. I wish he would do it more often - it's good for him. After long days at work, always taking care of his family and loved ones, Superman deserves a break!
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