Here's To Our Journey!!

Okay, so, 37 years ago today, I was getting ready to get married to a guy I barely knew.  However, at the time, I was so crazy in love the world could have ended and it would have been alright with me as long as I was with him.  I really thought I knew him.  No, I take that back.  I didn't even think about it.  Let me back up a bit:

Flashback to the summer of 1975.  My friend and I had travelled to Israel to spread our good news....I was part of the Jesus Movement and I wanted to basically convert the Jews to believe Jesus is their messiah.  So, I was living on a kibbutz working and learning their language.




And the pic below shows where we lived.

(that's Louie on the porch)


 I made a six month committment to do the ulpon program which was just that, working and learning Hebrew.  The first night that I arrived at Kibbutz Galed (in the Galilee region) I met him.  A wild looking British guy with frizzy hair, tight jeans and dark t-shirt. In a thick accent he asked where we were from.  When I told him America, he said, "Oh no, not more."  Yeah, nice first impression right?


As time went on we became friends and sort of hung out.  I remember going on a class trip to a beautiful place called Tel Dan.




The thing I remember most about him was that he was such a gentleman.  In the truest sense of the word.  He stayed with me, made sure that when we walked, the brush on the trail was out of my way.  That sort of did it for me.




Not to mention I thought he was pretty good looking.

It seems like a dream away, long ago and far away.  Here it is, over thirty seven years later.

Okay, I'm rambling.  To make a long story short, we went on a class trip to Massada.  That's where the Jews killed themselves to prove to the Romans, who had them trapped, that they would not die by their hands.  Anyway, Phil asked me to marry him there...where the jews killed themselves.





When he asked me, I said "I think I'm going to vomit."  (sort of a line I stole from a friend.)  But I did feel like that....butterflies etc. About a week before I had told him I wanted to talk to him.  He had just gotten back from work, which was milking the cows, and he felt pretty grubby.  He asked me if it could wait until after he showered.  I told him no...it could not!  I proceeded to tell him that I felt more for him than just a friend.  (At this point I was feeling pretty vulnerable, I didn't want to get hurt and rejected.)  He smiled, told me he felt the same, and suggested we take it "nice and slow."  Yeah, the next week he proposed.

Since then, we have been through three countries, three states, and five cities together.  Like I said, it seems like a world away that we met.  We've been through a lot more than geographical places too.  Our lives took several bumpy, and painful turns that we had no idea was part of our journey.  We have also had some beautiful times which  has been part of the glue that has held us together. We made two phenomenal children together, our greatest accomplishment, and now have three, brilliant, gorgeous grandchildren.

Our love has settled and matured, but has never lost it's spark.  I still see him and get excited when he walks in a room.  He is my best friend, my lover and we are growing old together.  It truly seems like last week we used to say that we wanted to be like the song "When I'm Sixy Four"....and that's just around the corner.

People talk about soul mates, and I believe there are those that we come in contact with where the connection is so strong that they become a part of your heart, a part of your soul.  He is just that....I love him and will always love him.

Here's to us!!!!