Well, it is quite late and I really should be going to bed. Tomorrow is a long day of teaching for me - on a off from 9:30am to 8pm! I have been blessed with a
full studio of students, and this prego mamma needs her sleep in order to keep up with all of them.
Anyway, despite the hour, I did want to take a moment a record a moment. A memory. One of those things that really make life good. It's funny, we think that it's the big trips or vacations or parties that make life enjoyable, but it's really the day to day
living that either make life a stressful chore or a delightful journey...
Yesterday was my birthday. I celebrated the day by having a day to myself and then the "parties" were today. So, today we had a great birthday lunch with the Wrights at Gringo's after church (love the green sauce!) and then went home. None of us - Grant, Eden or I - had gotten a lot of sleep Saturday night, so we came home and crashed. I mean, I fell asleep in the 4th quarter of the Texans game, when the we had just tied the score with 1:20 left in that game... I was
that tired.
When I awoke, I realized that Grant had been watching Eden for a while so that I could sleep. I then asked Grant what time it was.... and discovered it was 5:40! I had slept for
three hours! While this might seem like fabulous news, I - pregnant and hormonal, mind you - immediately burst out crying! My second birthday party with my parents started at 5:30, and I had missed it! Further, I had a laundry list of things that I needed to prep for teaching on Monday that I needed to get done before I went to my parents for the evening. So, I was devastated with the thought that I had missed my party and that I would now be up until all hours of the night getting ready for Monday. (My pregnant friends can
really identify with these kinds of exaggerated feelings.) Well, I completely lost it guys - just cried and cried! It's totally silly, but to my pregnant, tired mind, my birthday had been ruined.
But - this is really the part of the story that I'm getting at - Grant (I really should say, poor Grant, who had generously
helped me sleep so long by watching Eden and who never dreamed that I would react in such a negative way), just started quickly cleaning, vacuuming and helping me get ready for teaching. He never made a big deal about it, or told me I was acting irrationally, or complained. He just started helping me. He knew what had to be done, and he just did it. He even had an event that he was getting ready to leave for and helping me made him a little late. But, he did it anyway. And, to top it all off, when I came home from my birthday party with my parents, I found that Grant (who had beaten me home) had finished up doing the dishes, which were the last "chore" we weren't able to complete before leaving earlier.
While this may not seem like a huge moment
in our life, this is a picture
of our life. I could have told many such stories; truly, this is the kind of man that Grant is. I have a wonderful guy and a wonderful marriage because of him. And what really makes it great are not all the big, firework moments - the fun trips, the romantic dinners, etc. - but what makes it great are these little moments. How Grant helps me when I need it. How
kind he is to me. In addition to many other things, Grant is my
friend, and he is a good friend. And this makes him a really good husband. The Lord knew that my, uneven, task-oriented, short tempered, pessimistic, and brash personality would need someone who was steady, people-oriented, patient, optimistic, and kind. And the Lord gave me Grant. And I am so grateful.
As I was thinking about Grant today, I was reminded of a fantasy I had as a little girl. I would be in love with this big, super star athlete (
I know, I know, roll your eyes...) who lived next door to me (
yeah, keep rolling, but stick with me here.. ) But, in my imagination the moment that I knew that this guy loved me back was not when we brought me flowers or spoke some beautiful words, but it was something quite different, (which I remember so vividly): it was a moment when I was completely overwhelmed and suddenly needed help to prepare for some last minute event as my house and he dropped everything to come and help me. Really.
And today, I realized that this fantasy had come true. Or, that it had been true for many years, and I just now realized it.
Being married to Grant is humbling. He is someone who loves naturally and intentionally. As I think about these stories like today, I'm reminded of all the times that I have
not been patient with him and when I have
not dropped everything to help him. And it makes me want to be better.
I don't have a fabulous ending or a lofty point to make in all of this, except just to say that these are the things that I want our children, grandchildren, and many more generations after, to know about Grant:
He is a good man and being married to him is the delight of my life. : )
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