"My Valentine"

...not only are those words the title to one of my favorite Brickman songs, they also describe a very special person.
During the summer of 1993, while wearing a very bright green dress (really has nothing to do with it, but the dress was way too bright to be forgotten!), I fell in "love" with an enormously tall bass singer from Hobe Sound Bible College. Unfortunately, he was not ready to date a high school girl from the Midwest, so our brief whatever-it-was became a memory only to be revived for a good laugh in later years.
In the spring of 1996, the HSBC boy became reacquainted with green dress GBS girl, and the rest is history.
Occasionally, I will reminisce on the early days, realizing once again that I really had no idea what true love was all about. And that's probably a good thing. Did you realize that "true love" isn't really all that glamorous? Occasionally, through social networking sites, I will take a peek into the lives of younger types who are in and out of relationships like sand through an hourglass, and it is all there...the drama, suspense, hype, tears, smiles, romance, love songs, flowers, you name it. There is so much talk about "true love" and "forever yours", and all of those words with enduring value. Then I laugh and think to myself, "If you only knew!", hoping one day they really will know and will remain virtuous until that day so that they can live without regret.
So, back to my point, if in those early days we had really known what true love was and what it required, we may not have been quite so eager to sign on the dotted line. Don't take me wrong...no regrets here, just an observation.
Now it has been almost 13 years. We have been through births, miscarriage, major back surgery, deaths in the family, home purchases, sickness of various kinds, spiritual battles, many important decisions, and each of those things has strengthened the love interest that began as a tiny seed in 1996.
I clearly remember our 7th anniversary, and the meaning it held for me. Most divorces happen before the 7th year of marriage, so that became kind of a milestone for me. Not that divorce was ever an option for us (nor had we ever been at the point where we felt like we needed an option), but we weren't so naive as to think that it never happens.
Then came year #10. I always thought that people were pretty old when they reached the 10th anniversary, but by the time it rolled around, I had changed my mind. :)
Now we are approaching #13. I thank God continuously for the incredible husband and father He has placed in my life. This blog could not hold all of the wonderful things that I could say, so I'll not even try.
I'll just wrap up with this...I love you, Greg, and I hope that you had a wonderful Valentine's Day!



***This post is old, and remained unfinished, but I thought I should put it up anyway, cause I wanted to tell my man how much I love him! If you find it mushy or disgusting, please avoid throwing up on your computer keyboard, reach for a Tum, and move on...
By the way, I did part with the green dress (into which I shall never again fit) just a few months ago. Hope it made someone do the happy dance at the Goodwill store! :)