Anniversary

9/21/2018

Today, Jeff and I celebrate, our 44th anniversary. To confess, I actually had to use the calculator to see how many years we've been married! When you've been married this many years, the actual number of those years, doesn't always stay put in your brain. Okay, it didn't stick in my brain. 

You know those vows you take: richer or poorer, in sickness and in health. I have definitely tested the sickness part of the vow. I've been "mental" for more years than I can remember. But, after 2013, my short term memory is shot - and unfortunately, it's not coming back. I don't have dementia or alzheimers, and there are times I wish I did. Instead, I struggle to keep hold of the things I'm supposed to remember. And, sadly, I lose this battle on a daily basis.

Jeff is my best friend, my lifetime partner and the rock that helps me stay grounded. He has, over the past few years, been the one to explain to me, over and over again, what he's already told me. When I write down what I'm supposed to do, I forget where the paper is!  Truly sad.

As we celebrate today, and with the whole family on Saturday, I wish I had been/was a better partner to him. Jeff deserves somebody in the rowboat (an analogy that we've always used, about two people in the boat, rowing in the same direction), who can help row. 

Jeff has a huge personality, and has never met a stranger. He will help anybody, do anything, whenever he's needed.  And, thanks to learning from his Grandfather, Jeff can basically fix anything: electricity, plumbing, and once even built a garage. The boys continue to ask for his opinion and/or help with a project, and he's happy to help or listen.

So, for better or worse, we're still going strong, and hanging in there. Years of living, through ups and downs, help contribute to the adult person you become. Jeff and I have survived many of our down times, and enjoyed all the happy times. 

With the help of planning a get together, Stacey and Wendy have come through like champions.  They have already made plans for Thanksgiving and Christmas! Jeff and I are fortunate to have these two beautiful women in our lives. And, there is no way to describe how proud we both are of Scott and Andrew.  Benjamin, of course, is the cherry on top! 

On Saturday, we'll make a toast to our many years together as well as the years to come.

I love you Jeff, and wish that I could be a better partner for you. I look back fondly, on the years we've spent together. Correction: I look back fondly, on the good times. And, I look back at the bad times, and appreciate our perseverance. At bad times, I'm still in the rowboat, and we'll get that sucker to shore, I assure you.

Love, P