When rituals quietly stop working

“You and your partner used to take a walk after dinner most nights — nothing planned, just around the block, sometimes two. It became a thing. But somewhere over the last couple of months it stopped happening: one of you was tired, or it was raining, or there was something to watch. Tonight dinner's done, dishes are in the sink, and you're both standing in the kitchen with nowhere to be. Your partner is already drifting toward the couch.”