the bench

23 years ago today….

23 years ago today I remember exactly where I was sitting around 3:30 in the afternoon.
I remember the bench outside of the gymnasium at school
Where a certain boy sat to the right of me,
A boy that is now my husband.

It was one simple afternoon.
One normal day
On a bench.

The journey of our life essentially started on that bench
Outside the gym that afternoon.

A journey that has not been easy.
A journey of struggle and hardship
Of death and defeat.

There have been times when we have had to fight tooth and nail to make things work.

There have been seasons that have truly sucked.
There have been seasons full of incredible joy as well.
And all that is in-between.

Our journey has brought us amazing accomplishments.
I have grown more and more in awe of him over the years.

He went from the boy on the bench
That I was infatuated with
Who wasn’t even old enough to have his driver’s license.

To the man in the James Bond tuxedo
That I stared at when I walked down the aisle.

To the young dad
Changing our son’s first diapers in the hospital.
Neither one of us had changed a diaper before,
And he chose to tackle the first one.

To my hero
Who served his country in a time of war.

To the amazingly talented man
Who is absolutely phenomenal in his field of work
And is the hardest worker I’ve ever met.

To the man with the graying hair
Who sat next to me as we watched our son walk across the stage to get his diploma.

And this one particular day, 23 years later
Is the day of our oldest son’s graduation party.

As I prepared for this day
Wading through literally thousands of pictures,
Preparing to celebrate our incredible son,
I couldn’t help but reflect
On the absolutely amazing life I have had with the boy on the bench.

A life that started with one simple afternoon
One normal day
On a bench.

You never truly know how a single event, a single moment, can change the course of your life.

Our amazing
Sometimes hard
Sometimes peaceful
Sometimes frustrating
Sometimes ordinary
Sometimes grueling
Oftentimes happy
Life

A life I would not change
For anything.