The Man I was Meant to Meet

I have been married 21 years today. There have been good times and bad times and this will just have do, times. Every single phase we have made our way through has helped us become a better couple. I knew the moment I met my husband that I would marry him. I was not even looking for marriage at that point in my life, but when I met my husband I knew I had met someone I could trust, who had integrity and who was genuine. We were meant to meet.

We are not perfect, we argue. Most often we argue because neither of us is willing to admit the other might be right. We are both quite certain the other is wrong until one or the other proves differently and by then the aggravation level is so high that it is too hard to give in and the difference of opinion dangles in the air much longer than necessary. That’s who we are and we have learned to make it work.

We have always said that we will never walk away from our commitment to each other. On those days when that promise seems the hardest to keep, I have found that I have to look the hardest at myself. It is easy to dig in your heels and see where the other person is wrong, but many times it is when you lean into the mirror and take a good hard look, that you notice that you are the one standing on the wrong side. I have to be honest that I have looked in that mirror way too many times.

There is no perfect marriage. When we walk into a marriage we all walk in with our own suitcases filled with clothes, but we also have baggage that we bring that includes all of our families “stuff” and any extra “stuff” we pick up along the way. Many times the quirks and personality traits that draw you into the relationship are the very same quirks and traits that later drive you nuts. My husband made me laugh. I thought my husband was the funniest person I had ever met, than I married him. This may shock you, but his idea of funny will many times now push me right over the edge. “Seriously”, I will say, “do you really think you need to be funny right now?”

Somehow all tangled up in the crazy relationship marriage creates is a bond that is hard to break. I still respect my husband’s integrity, I still believe he is genuine and I trust him implicitly. Even after 21 years of his sense of humor I would be lying if I said I did not like it. Who can possibly think laughing is a bad think, even if it means you have to laugh at yourself. 21 years is just the beginning of the rest of a great life and I am so happy to share this life with the man I know I was meant to meet.