Happy Anniversary Sweetie!

The company where we met has changed its name several times.  The church where we were married has changed its color scheme, the pastors that married us have passed away, the hotel where we spent our first night as husband and wife has been torn down, thankfully that money pit of a car has been long gone, Aquarena Springs hotel where we honeymooned no longer exists as it did back in the day, Roy's parents, my mom, and all our grandparents at our wedding, they too have passed away.  There has been a lot of changes in the past 36 years of our marriage, but the most profound change is; I don't love or feel the way I did about Roy on that day we took our vows.  I love him even more!  Remember saying, we won't be like everyone else, we will never have difficulties with one another.  How could we ever be mad at each other?   Well, sadly we were unrealistic in those ideals, but we did set ground rules early on, we never would joke, tease or in anger say we wanted a divorce because we believe that divorce is not an option.  Don't get me wrong, we had words, heated words but never in any of those...um...discussions, did we utter or bring up divorce.  We also would not go to bed mad and there my friends I am so glad we married young.  Because only the young can stay up all night hashing out reconciliation and forgiveness and then go to work.  There is the old cliché that anything worth having is worth fighting for and once we saw that, instead of fighting one another, we turned a corner.  Roy turned the corner before me because I was good at arguing and didn't want to give up that skill but I eventually turned the corner too because of Roy, his love and his example. 

My roommate introduced us at a noon Bible study held once a week in a conference room at Pennzoil.  Roy was an auditor and I worked in the treasury department.  So, he was on the 19th floor where treasury was located a lot on official business...but then he came around a lot to stop and visit with me.  After he returned from six weeks in Brussels, he took me out to lunch at Charlie's 517.  After that lunch, neither one of us was too impressed with the other; I thought he was arrogant and he thought I was shallow.  But then, he asked me out to a concert but I already had a date to it.  He asked me out again and I had other plans, but I changed them and went out with him.  And as it is said, the rest is history.  Work Roy and Regular Roy are two differently entire things and I know that now. 

We both brought baggage into our marriage and after years of lugging it around and after unpacking and packing it right back up, we've found what love is all about and finding love means ditching the baggage and traveling light.  In recent years many young single women would say to me, I want to marry a man just like Roy and I would respond, he didn't come this way.  We have learned so much from one another.  His kindness, generosity, spiritual guidance and leading, his heart...Oh, I love that man!  He once asked me never to refer to him as 'my man' because he thought it objectified him, rather than personalized him.  He is not macho in his appearance but he is tough when and where he needs to be.  "Man Up" describes him through all these years and he man upped before it was a cool term to throw around. 

 Through these last five years he has carried the load of so many things I was physically unable to do and never once complained.   

So today as I am everyday so thankful for Roy.  I appreciate, love and respect him.  He thinks I'm funny.  He thinks I am deep.  He thinks I'm beautiful.  He keeps me from going to my fearless zone.  I think he's handsome, pretty dang cool, smart, spiritual and mine. 

Love you Roy!  Here's to 36 more years!!!