Ode to Hope

I saw her one morning at church and vowed to learn her name. A year later we met. One week later we went on our first date. What jumped out at me that night was how perfectly our hands fit together. Three months later we were engaged. Eleven months after our first date we were married. That is the first picture.

10,220 days have passed.

The kids are moved out so we had to adjust to the quiet. She finally succumbed to glasses and we had to adjust our kissing angles. We’ve lost friends and family members so we had to adjust our relationships. We are more forgetful so we had to adjust to lists.  But the hands still fit together perfectly, no adjustment there. The smiles are coming from a deeper place, the joy is earned. That is the second picture.

April 10. Happy anniversary, Hope. Thanks for saying yes (and grabbing my hand).