Calls

He went to the airport. He called me. He waited for the plane. He called me. He got on the plane (after it was delayed an hour). He called me. He landed at our home airport. He called me. He's getting his luggage. He'll call me.
Fifteen years ago when we went on our first "not date" he said he'd like to ask me out for the next night, would that be ok, IF he could remember to call me? What? You don't know if you'll be able to remember to call me? For some reason, I said yes. And I waited all day the next day for him to call. The phone didn't ring. My sister (13 at the time) said I should marry him. My mom thought he was great. My dad didn't mind him. My brother thought he was nice. My baby sister (5 and didn't like ANYONE I dated) just thought he was "too young to be growing a mustache". But the phone is NOT ringing. It got to be the hour that he'd said if he hadn't called by--to give up and he still hadn't called. I was giving up. Then he called. He'd been calling all day he said, but he'd been calling me at the office that I worked at then...and not my house. Oops. It's alright. I'm not doing anything (except dumping my good buddy Mike with my parents for the evening since he HAD called and I wasn't doing anything he decided to come over to hang with me and my parents!)--sure I'll be ready in 20 minutes. Yep, it's a date. He called.
We spent most of our courtship on the phone. It was a long distance love. I had the phone bills to prove it! (Before email! Cell phones! Cheap long distance!) But he called. We would talk all night long. My roomate would snore on and I would whisper in deep conversation with him. Those were sweet times of innocent love. Getting to know him and what made him tick. I loved the way he ticked. His quirky sense of humor, his quick wit, his ponderings and the way he could share his heart with me so easily.
We've married. Bought our first house. Laying in bed at night with Uno in my belly. He calls to our baby in utero, "Hey B-AAAAA-BY". Oh my gosh how our baby would go nuts. He would get him all riled up. I'd roll over to try to sleep with a jumping bean in my belly.
He's on a two week trip with his job and he calls. He wants to talk to me and he really wants to talk to Uno (who is 1 1/2). He's so homesick for us. He talks to Uno. Uno is a wreck for the next 3 days because his "Da" called but didn't come home! Later when he called again, I told him...no more talking to Uno...out of sight out of mind until you come home to us.
Tonight. After dinner in the car in the dark on the way home with the three suns. The phone rings. He's calling. Dos says, "I want to talk to him". They talk about stuff. Then he has to go because "the alien is talking now", Dos says. Then he laughs and says, "It wasn't really an alien, Mom it was the pilot. Dad is really coming home tonight. He's on the plane." He lays back in the seat, content. The other two smile. Peace falls over the car as we drive (finally!). He's coming home tonight, he called. When I tucked them in tonight, all three of them said, will you tell Dad to come in and tuck me in when he gets home? I know they've missed him. As have I!
Life is hard, stuff happens, but when he calls it's all SO much better.