Abiding Love

It was 26 years and 18 days ago
that we got married.
But if you go back a bit further than that,
to a dance in the summer of 1991,
that is where it all started.

When he asked me to join him out on the floor
I remember wondering why someone
who looked like him
wanted to dance with someone
who looked like me.
But I didn't argue.
I remember noticing the way that his arms,
tan and muscled,
contrasted with his shirt.
I remember noticing how he smiled when he spoke,
how that smile made me feel happy and warm
and weak in the knees.
And how when the song ended
I wanted to come up with something to say
to make him stay there
with me
just a little bit longer.

Then yesterday,
somewhere less than 27 years from the day that we met,
as he stood in front of a room and spoke from his heart,
I noticed that his strong hands,
calloused from years of hard work,
evidence of love for his family and his neighbors,
contrasted with his suit and tie.
I noticed that his hair now holds streaks of silver
but his eyes still shine
when he speaks of things
that he holds in his heart.
When he was finished talking,
he sat next to me
and looked at me
and smiled.
And that smile made me feel happy and warm
and weak in the knees.

I have known him close to 7 years longer
than I haven't.
And I'm not sure why,
but I think that 26 years and 18 days
is my favorite anniversary so far.