Drew and I are quickly approaching our second anniversary. It seems as if the time has just flown by. Friends are commenting, “Are you sure it’s two years? It’s got to be just one…” Drew will usually respond, sounding absolutely exhausted, “No, it feels like FIVE.” To which he usually gets a stink eye or a playful shove from me.
The past couple weeks I’ve been gearing up for the 21st of June, planning little surprises and gifts for my hubby. We decided months ago that we were going to take our anniversary off and give ourselves a long weekend. To make sure we weren’t distracted by house chores and clutter, we booked a hotel room. We’re not even going out of town, but just getting out of the house will feel like a retreat. We’re looking forward to a weekend of rest and time together. Sleeping in and cuddling together, having drinks in the afternoon, and just enjoying each other. Drew even rented a convertible, so we can cruise around town in the 100 degree heat in style. Sweet.
A friend last week commented, “I still think of you two as newlyweds!” I responded, “I still feel like a newlywed.” I really do. Sometimes I look at Drew and get the little giddy, butterfly feeling. This week, every time I’ve thought about him, I’ve just smiled to myself, thinking about how totally in love with him I am. That’s a great feeling.
Those who know Drew and I know that we have an odd little love story. We’re not the couple you’d expect to see together. Despite the foot difference in height, there are some other aspects that make us seem like the odd couple. Our personalities are quite different. When we first met each other, we didn’t like each other. I thought to myself, “What a profane heathen,” as he made his crude jokes and drank beer Sunday afternoon after church. He looked at me and thought, “What a stuck up, prissy little church girl,” as I prayed for our Sunday afternoon meal and God to bless our conversation. Despite the fact that he was married at the time and we were obviously not looking to each other for any sort of romantic interest, we were not going to be pursuing each other.
Fast forward about five years. I had been on tour with the African Children’s Choir; he had been through a divorce and some major life changes. We had sort of kept in touch, so when I returned home, I got a friendly hug and a welcome back, and a lunch invite. I went to lunch with him and a good friend of his (who has since become like a big brother to me) and his friend’s son. At the end of the lunch, I cracked open my fortune cookie to read, “The time is right for a friendly chat to lead to romance.” I laughed about it, slipped it into my wallet and forgot about it until over a year later, when Drew and I were dating. We might not have been dating had that good friend not told Drew, “She’s totally into you!” (I wasn’t) “You should follow up with that!” (he did).
Long story short, this odd couple decided to give us a shot, and were pleasantly surprised at how well we worked. We often have “What the hell moments,” where we look at each other and wonder how in the hell we ended up together. However it happened, this church girl and heathen man are glad it did.
Happy Anniversary, baby. Here’s to many, many more.