Seems like yesterday...

I know that married couples share anniversaries every day. And each are special and unique to the pair. They make you remember the corny and the cherished moments you shared that day so many years ago. Make you count and measure the reasons you love each other more than you ever thought possible. You've built a life together.

John and I shared nine years this week, over cheeseburgers, overlooking the bay in Alabama. In the middle of a week we spent with my sweet Aunt. And though it's not marked as one of the biggies, it felt pretty monumental to the two of us. We've been a part of each other's lives for a decade now...oh, we're old.

Somehow September 21st we always end up talking about what the life ahead of us looked like from where we stood that day...the plans we'd made. And let me say, we were so far off the mark. But standing here today, I'm thankful for every step we took in this direction. I could not have planned this place, or this time, or this love.

We have a lifetime of stories to tell in nine years. I like that. They're OUR stories.

It should come as no surprise in all my romantic notions that while I had the chance this week, I read a lot of Lord Byron. I literally get lost in his sentiment. I like to mull over the words and imagine where he was when he wrote, what moment provoked such emotion, such thought. And just a few lines from one of my favorites rang with great clarity this week. Just being a part of his life for the past nine years, swift moving, colorful days that quickly collected; I'd have rather been here than traveling the world or pursuing those plans that are now a distant thought in our minds. I can say honestly that it has not always been easy. There have been hard days, even years. There have been rough roads to walk together. But moments where you could not have found two happier people on the planet. All of it made sweeter, richer, as I've shared it with him. So much to look forward to.

"And our days seem as swift, and our moments more sweet, With thee by my side than with worlds at our feet." -Lord Byron