Endurance

It has been on my dream board for a year now and yesterday after a summer of building my endurance I finally ran a 10K with my husband Mark. 10K is 6.2 miles and it has not been easy to get to this point, but I had set this goal for myself and I wanted to complete it. What made the goal even more attainable was that my husband, Mark latched on to my goal and he has been running with me and slowly helping me increase my endurance. Honestly, I am not sure I could have gotten to this point without him he has been by my side every step of the way.

 Today is our 19^th wedding anniversary and quite honestly I have to tell you that we have worked on our marriage endurance throughout our entire 19 years together. I have no doubt that every year from here forward will also require the same effort to stay strong and maintain our marriage. Each step we take together in our marriage has built our relationship and made it even stronger. Every challenge, every bad day and every good day has helped get us to the 19 year mark on our calendar.

 I am blessed that 19 years ago Mark stood waiting for me at the end of the aisle in our church. He vowed to love, honor and cherish me and he also vowed to love and cherish my daughter Ashleigh as his own. He has never wavered from those vows. I am sure that there were times when Mark wondered what he had gotten himself into, but he continued to stand by our marriage even through the hard stuff.

 There are not enough words to describe the love I have for my husband. Mark works hard to build me up and he continues to grow himself. Mark has an easy laugh and the ability to become frustrated at the drop of a hat. He has patience beyond words with me and my quick temper that burns hot and mellows quickly. We both scratch our heads some days wondering what drew us together, yet we cannot remember ever being without the other. These 19 years have gone quickly yet have at the same time seemed everlasting.

 Having Mark by my side helped me reach my goal yesterday, but it also reminded me what a lucky lady I am and how with a little patience and a lot of work you can achieve just about anything even a solid life and marriage. Every day is not a bed of roses, we have our battles. Actually we have quite a few of them, but those battles are the bricks that have helped build what we have together. Yesterday we ran 10K, but 19 years ago today we began a marathon, Mark has been by my side he entire time and we have built the endurance to stay strong. I love you Mark!