Three Great Years

Three years ago I made one of the best decisions of my life in marrying Lisa.

In three years she has brought me wonderful companionship. She is my best friend and confidant. She listens to my ramblings and mumblings and is even getting pretty good at giving courtesy laughs to my incessant onslaught of terrible jokes and puns. She gives me a counterpart in political and other charged debates. She gives me a loving voice to hear before I drift off to sleep. Nothing beats climbing into bed and falling into a slumber with your arms wrapped around the woman you love (unless it's too hot - then you have to settle for sprawling out next to them :) ).

In three years she has made me an immeasurably better person...academically, spiritually, and in personality. It goes without saying that my GPA is far higher than it would be without her promptings and her example. As a result I am probably now at a better graduate school than I would be otherwise with better mentoring opportunities and with a brighter future. She reads the scriptures daily and in other ways sets the example for me and reminds me of the heavenly duties I have both as a husband and as a bearer of the Priesthood. She does not shy away from tempering me and correcting me when I am out of line. I hope that I can be more humble and receptive to her good suggestions. In all these ways she has impacted my current and future life for good.

In three years she has given me one cherished son, and will soon hopefully give me an equally beloved daughter. She has, at considerable sacrifice, raised our son at a level beyond all expectations. Lisa is not one of those stereotypical Mormon girls that grew up with an eye single to the objective of having and raising a family (not that there is anything wrong with that view - more power to you if you have that goal and succeed). Lisa has lived a very academic life and has prepared herself well for a successful career - just ask anyone for whom she has worked! She has been willing to set aside her professional aspirations, at least for a time, in order to perform her work in the home. Her pay in her potential career would easily cover the expense of child support, but this is the route (to my happiness) she has chosen. Our son is healthy, intelligent, and happy. I owe all these attributes to her.

When we were first married, I used to make her look at me as I turned off the light on the nightstand so that "her face would be the last thing I saw before I went to sleep." Although I don't explicitly do that anymore, I hope she knows that she's still in my dreams.