The Non-Lame Date

This past week, Robyn has been planning a surprise date for me. Normally, I plan surprises for her. I did alot of surprise dates while we were dating, and now that we're married I even plan surprise vacations (she usually knows we're going on vacation, just not where) such as our honeymoon and our anniversary trip. So, it was fun knowing that she was planning a surprise for me. But when I told her I was excited, she would say things like, "Don't get too excited" or "I hope you're not disappointed." Of course these things lead me to ask her such things as "Why are you planning a lame date?"

Well, the date finally occurred last night. We doubled with my brother Zack and his girlfriend Delta and started by going to my favorite restaurant, Los Hermanos. That act alone assured that the date would not be lame ever.

After that they gave me an address to drive to. It took us into the ghetto of Provo. (Not that Provo really has a ghetto but if it did we would have been there.) There was a little haunted house there that some of Zack's friends work at. I love haunted houses and Robyn knows that. Unfortunately, she hates them. So I was pleasantly surprised that we were going to one. Robyn was holding my hand as we walked from the car to the building. The closer we got, the tighter her grip became. We actually entered the building and got in line to buy tickets. At this point Robyn's face started looking something like this:
She was doing her best to hide her fear, she really wanted to be able to go for me. I took one look at her and decided I didn't want her to go in. I told her that and she kept saying she wanted to go. I turned to Zack and we decided to go home and have some treats.

But I was truly amazed at Robyn's courage. Some of you may say, "How was she courageous if she was so afraid?" Bruce Lee said that "Courage is not the absence of fear, it is the ability to act in the presence of fear." Robyn was ready to give of herself despite the fear she felt. She knew how much fun I would have if we went, and was ready to act on my behalf in spite of her fear. I greatly admire the courage that Robyn showed me she had. As Mark Twain said, "Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear - not absence of fear. Except a creature be part coward it is not a compliment to say it is brave." Robyn certainly showed that she was brave despite the fears she held. Getting a chance to see that strength of character made the date anything but lame.