Anniversaries can be landmine days. Like birthdays, Christmas and Valentines Day businesses have made it their business to tell you how these days should be celebrated. “Show your love with a diamond” or “nothing says I love you like a car in the driveway with a big bow on top”. The message is clear; if you don't deliver the goods you can kiss your relationship goodbye.
While I would never say no to a car or a diamond (I’m not crazy), John and I decided that while we are on this journey we are forgoing exchanging gifts on these traditional days. Instead we are making the experiences the gifts. In addition, if one of us sees something on our journeys that we really want we get it. It is sort of like a deferred gift from a designated holiday.
Anyway this year our 30th wedding anniversary fell here in the countryside of Northern England. They do have really nice 4 and 5 star dining restaurants but not in the villages near us. And a fancy dinner I can have in the States. So when John asked me (as he usually does) how I wanted to spend our anniversary I knew right away. I wanted to go on a picnic.
On the morning of June 20 we packed a backpack with cheese, bread and bubbly and drove down to Lake Coniston. At the launch we were advised to take the taxi boat that both toured the lake and made stops along the bank. We got off at a lovely but less popular location and hiked up the bank to the path. We found a bench overlooking the lake and enjoyed our al fresco celebration. No gifts, No cards, No waiters. Just us together on our day.
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