“A Long long time ago, I can still remember…”
Of course, a long time only being 365 days ago. If technicalities were requested and an accurate account of a previous date was recommended of the actual moment my life was change, that number would be many times larger. Today, my wife and I celebrate the annual reminder of the public moment (not including including when we became “Facebook official”) that her and I promised our lives to one another. This one in particular is special in that in signifies our first of many annual reminders of that special day.
The one-year anniversary that many couples today strive to reach has become a reality for us. We made it. I, to many of my friends surprise, did in fact NOT screw it up. From the moment we said “I do” to this morning when I was woken up at 5:45 a.m. with a kiss on the cheek and some of the sweetest words I have ever heard float pleasantly into my ear, smacking my R.E.M. cycle off whack to the point that I was instantly hearing, “happy one-year, sweetheart! I love you.” There is no one in this world, not even the grumpiest old fart, that would prefer the buzzing sound of an old box screaming loudly five times alarming you that it is yet another day to slum through, over the delightful sound of the person you love taking only 15 seconds to express a subtle yet perfect emotion on a special, momentous day like today, our one-year wedding anniversary. This day means more to us than most would think. Our first 365 days came with more than its “fair share” of struggles and obstacles than we were warned about. Story-time anyone?
Within our first six months of marriage, we participated in the typical marital excitement that is… the move-in day. More than 10 car trips to-and-from her house to mine with more articles of clothing than any one human being should be aloud to possess and the shoes… nevermind, that may be for another time. I have never seen so many make-up items, dangly thingies, and hook-em holders. Then there was the car trips to deliver my items that I had “grown out of” and were “out of style” to local charities and consignment shops. Needless to mention, that was the beginning to an exciting journey that I had not even the slightest of idea of any map that would even know how to chart the direction in which we were traveling. Yeah, take a second and read that line again and maybe you had an idea of the excitement that we were having. Also, within those exciting months, we also had to uproot, yet again, her classroom for the third time. This is not a pretty picture that most would think is easy peasy. This means new sticky stick-ems, more “higher on the left”s and a new kind of wall art. I now consider myself a certified classroom decorating extraordinaire. Try me. These may sound like fun times, and yes they were very interesting and had many high moments, but that is not all our first six months had in store.
Excitedly, both our parents were able to be at our wedding. During our wedding, I believe our mothers went through three boxes of Puffs, the thick fluffy stuff, not the thin trashy stuff. My dad, of course, kept a stern look to hold back the tears I know he was strong enough to hold back. We both are good like that. It’s a good thing to hold back emotions right? Anyways, four months after our wedding my father got sick and was in the hospital for a few days. It was a scary time. Not a fun time. “Hard” would be sugar coating this feeling. After those few days, he came out better and began improving. That was until our second six months began.
December 21 rolled around and we were about to celebrate our first Christmas together. She was prepared and had everything wrapped while the A-typical male drive that was…well, me had only one present wrapped and about four or five others waiting to be wrapped…waiting to be brought home… waiting to be picked up… waiting to be paid for… yes, waiting to be decided upon. OK! I procrastinate a little bit. What of it? I did have a few ideas and was planning to pick them out before Christmas morning, stores are still open on Christmas Eve, right? Anyways, we were at my mothers house in Kentucky when we received a call alerting us that my father was being rushed to ICU for lack of oxygen and many other symptoms that were a severe sign of immediate emergency care. We made it home and was able to secure our confirmation that he was stable and improving.
We made it through Christmas, I did not screw it up thank you very much, and had JUST flipped the coin on a new year, ringing in our first year as a newlywed couple, when dad was released from the hospital January 1. Not a week later, January 6, Sarah and I experienced our first loss and biggest obstacle that we would encounter. Our first test, not eight months after “I do”, we lost my dad. Without going into the many important details of my father being the figure I grasped on to and leaned upon, understand that it was the last place I would ever want to end up in. I tend to not have any enemies, but if I did… don’t worry, I would not even wish you there to that place of heartache. And so we fast-tracked our emotional levels to a point that we were not yet prepared to take them, grasped each others hands, and loosened our emotional boundaries a little more than our comfort level would allow to in order for us to express our hardest struggle yet.
The second six months ended very similarly to its beginning. Not a week ago today, we received the news of the loss of my grandfather, my fathers father. He was the example that my dad used to build me, teach me, and mold me into. Poppa was the essential grandfather optimizes the ideal version of what one should be. He gave his country many years of service in WWII, he gave his community his commitment as a Free Mason, and he gave his life to the protection and happiness of his family. Knowing that next to my cousin, I am what is left of a line of men that have had a history of proving their worth and raising children that will hopefully do the same. Even during yet another hard time for Sarah and I, we were able to show our vulnerability and trust in each other.
Thank you to friends and family that reminded us to be strong because, “your first year of marriage is always the hardest”. We take this now with a grain of salt, knowing that within our first year we have overcame obstacles that would have normally tore families apart, caused a riff between couples that would have taken years to overcome, or even cause some to break the commitment that they gave one another those 365 days before that bonded them together until death would they part.
We understand that Satan and the world will continue the throw things in our path in an attempt to disprove Mark 10:9 and sever what the Lord has brought together. But with faith, hope, and love we will conquer even the hardest years to come. However, using our first 365 as a precedent of years to come, I think we have a pretty good fighting chance to secure a victory to whatever may come our way.
Sarah, I am truly thankful for the love and patience that you have given me over the past few years that has been our relationship. It could not have began at a more important stage in my life. This proves even more than if the Lord brings you to it, He will bring you through it. I truly believe he put you in my life knowing that you would be the constant, you would be the exception, and you would be the one that would be my partner through life and, this past year being the example, through death. I could not have planned this any more perfectly. Though other girls in my life came and went, there was only one that I would have wanted to stop sand stay for good. You are the reason for any song, you are the meaning behind every word, you are the purpose for the one life I get to live. I love you with all of my heart and thank you for being the one that I get to celebrate the first 365 with. I can only imagine what each 365 will offer from here on out.
HAPPY ONE-YEAR ANNIVERSARY!
