The Rock

The first year we were married we were broke. I mean BROKE...we thought we had money because we were making more than we ever had, but I was in school and working for a daycare, and Chris was working for a surveying company that was just getting started. We did manage to buy a new car, but it was the only car we had for the next ten years of our married life.

We lived in Lake Highlands in an apartment that we loved. We actually had our own washer and dryer and an island in the kitchen. Oh how we loved that apartment. Right behind our apartment we had a beautiful walking area with a creek. We would walk back there quite often.

My birthday was coming up and we did not have a lot of money. Chris was so worried because he wanted to get me something really nice. He worried and worried. He even said to me how sorry he was that he was not going to be able to spend much money on me, if any. I was a little sad, but I told him with my best face on that it was okay as long as we were together that was the only present that I needed.

So my birthday arrived. He was a little embarrassed , but that morning he handed me a fairly large rock and a piece of yellow lined paper.

The paper had a poem on it about the rock and the rock represented our love. I was so touched. It was possibly the best present I had ever received. I am ashamed to say that I have looked and looked and looked for that yellow piece of paper. I still have the rock to remind me, but the paper has disappeared in the last fifteen years. I do remember that he compared the rock to our love and how it is constant.

Our love has been constant over the last fifteen years, but seldom easy. We have had lots of storms that we have weathered together, and some that we have weathered independently because we were too stubborn to lean on each other, but each day we have chosen to love each other. I happily make the choice to love him everyday, and I know that he does the same thing.