Here’s a tongue-in-cheek account by Dr. Preeti about what it’s to be a geologist’s wife. A humourous account of a rocky relationship, exclusively for Different Truths.  

“Civilisation exists by geological consent, subject to change without notice.” ~ Will Durant

An army wife is called a ‘Braveheart’ but a geologist’s wife is called a ‘Stone-heart’.

She puts up with a geologist who is not perfect but full of faults.
Army wives are associated with war and martyrdom but a geologist’s wife with adventure and disaster. It is truly a hard rock life. We become living fossils, aging paleontologically as we are always out dating.

Life begins and ends in jungles, mountains, glaciers. We learn to live with nature. Living in tents, camping outdoors, attending to nature’s call in the wild, cooking on stoves, the absence of basic amenities like electricity, toilets is a part and parcel of life.

Entertainment is vast, with singing cicadas, buzzing mosquitoes, an array of colourful butterflies in the day and dull moths at dusk. At dusk, a phosphorescence of glow-worms fills the air. Ants and spiders are constant companions playing peek-a-boo in our tents. At nightfall kerosene lamps are lighted to cook, log wires are made to ward off wild beasts. As leopards, bears, elephants are common sights. We can be caught unawares by a preying leopard or a strolling pachyderm. At times even an arm extended out from the tent flap can cause problems. An incident etched on my mind is an itchy, sweaty arm extended out of the tent made me jump. I had itched on the back of a prowling grizzly. Before I could react, the grizzly too was taken aback, retraced its steps and I heaved a sigh of relief.

The jungles abound in species of insects and reptiles. One has to be wary as scorpions, blood-sucking leeches and slithering serpents can make us their prey. Large amounts of insecticide are sprayed outside tents to ward of these creatures. Commutation in rickety jeeps makes the entire body somersault.

When a natural disaster strikes, our world turns topsy-turvy. The perils associated with the job causes volcanic eruptions in our lives. The minute he is called for duty during a catastrophe, my mind ebbs with a tsunami of emotions. I get lost in an ABYSS of depression, fearing the worst. I feel:  

Seasons come and go,

The years pass away,

Where the river flows,

Deserts once held sway.”

I know my spouse will never wrinkle but show lineation, will never die but recrystallise. He remains young and evergreen as he will never lose his lustre.

We have no time to rave and rant as we will always rock and date. He serenades me with mushy geological talks.

He quips, “Are you an aftershock of an earthquake because I think I am falling for you all over again. If there is an earthquake in my heart, you’d be my EPICENTER. Don’t take me for granite, I can be an ultramafic lover, you are like an exothermic reaction, spreading your hotness everywhere. You are like a dictionary, you add meaning to my life. My only wish Baby, is opposites attract. Let’s both form an ionic bond for life.” Hearing all this mine heart tangos and I feel I can party Alunite long. I will remain in fine fettle for with all his faults, he makes me a rock.

The history and mystery of time,
Is etched in our DNA
Each alteration points to past forms,
Each strand points to present potential,
Pushing us forth into the future.

©Dr. Preeti Talwar 

Photos from the Internet

#GeologistsWife #Humour #Tongueincheek #Relationships #LifeWithAGeologist #DifferentTruths

Dr. Preeti Talwar

Dr. Preeti Talwar is a science doctorate, freelance writer and blogger. She is passionate about writing and has made her mark on print and digital media. She has published in The Chicken Soup Series. She has worked as an online proofreader with Thakur Publications. Her passion is to write and become a prolific writer. Her other hobbies are painting, reading and cooking. She is a perfectionist and wields the pen and ladle with elan.

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