Bats & Birthdays

Yesterday was Jim's birthday. Birthdays tend to be a big deal in my family. My parents always planned great parties for me as a kid, (Thanks, Mom & Dad!). Friends at school would ask, with great anticipation, "What are you doing for your birthday NEXT year?", a day or two after my latest shindig.

Jim puts a lot of thought into my gifts and even makes my cards, so I wanted to return the favor and do something big for his birthday. Unfortunately, with the amount of money I have, or lack thereof, it's hard to do something "big". I tried to think of a big gesture that would really show him how much I love him.

So, we went spelunking. I remember the first time Jim asked me if I'd ever gone spelunking, and I replied, "Huh?!". I thought it was some hick Erie thing akin to cowtipping. For those of you like me, "spelunking" is defined as "exploring caves".

Why was this a big gesture? Because I am a bit claustrophobic, and because I am terrified of bats. I believe it all started as a kid, when a bat landed on my head, and my best friend decided to mess with me, by telling me that bats lay eggs in people's hair. I had nightmares about the bat babies hatching for weeks!

Anyway, Jim was excited when he realized what we were doing, but a bit let down when he realized we were doing the family tour, not the climbing through and exploring muddy crevices with only a flashlight option. He said, "Well, this will get you used to it, so we can do that the next time". I barely nodded as I silently recited my mantra, "Bats are just puppies with wings. Just puppies with wings". (Thanks for the idea, Rachel!)

As I stood in the cold, damp, dark cave, listening to Jim ask our tour guide question after question, I couldn't help but chuckle to myself. He really finds this stuff fascinating! Amazing! I only asked one question, "What are these holes?" - translation: "Are there bats in them?" Luckily, we only saw one bat, and it was tiny, so I just semi-calmly walked past while Jim and our guide stopped to discuss it.

Poor Jim. I think he honestly believes I might go back and do the deep cave exploring. But, really. Should a 5'11", clumsy, claustrophobic, bat fearing individual be crawling and hiking through muddy, slippery rock, with just a flashlight? I don't think so. Then again, never underestimate the power of love.