a very "couple-y" thing to do

a week and a half ago i arrived home from a day in rockport with a. and j. was all geared up. "we're going to play tennis," he said.

and so we did.

this was the first time in my life i ever played tennis. and i loved it. not only when i hit the ball, but when i missed the ball and had to chase after it, feeling my lungs expand and my feet pound the pavement. whether or not i'm good at it, it's good for me. and good for me and j. it's the first sport where i don't feel so incompetent next to him. i'm not saying he's bad. i'm saying we're both pretty mediocre and i'm not so bad that i drag him down and test his patience. tennis really fits all the criteria: it's outdoorsy, it's sporty, it's something we do together, it's free, and it's something we both have fun at.

we've now played tennis four times. the last two times i've really been improving. we volley pretty well, and i'm good at noticing where the ball will land and bounce, so i run to just the right place. my backhand needs a lot of work, and i still miss the ball, of course, but then i think to myself "this is good for me" and i run after it. and sometimes i hit the ball way over to the left or right so that j. has to go chasing after it. and then i think "this is good for him, too."

i think tennis has brought us closer. we always walk away with a sense of accomplishment and a sort of happy glow.