I was sitting in my office the other day thinking back over the last three years of my life since
Nik came into the picture. Prior to meeting the man who stole my heart I had big plans, plans that included moving to a foreign country and living my life as an independent rather than as part of a unit. Well... I guess we all know that never happened. What I didn't know was that taking a chance on a man that I met one night and then didn't see again for five months would be the best decision of my life.
Looking back at that time, I don't think many of our friends and family thought we were sane. The decision to commit to a man who was leaving for five months to protect our country some-odd 4000 miles away didn't seem difficult at the time. To be honest, it wasn't a difficult decision at all. I know that many of my friends and family were concerned about the intensity of my feelings that seemed to erupt out of the very pores from my body, but I had complete faith in how the situation would turn out. I would not have called my mother to tell her I met the man I was going to marry after knowing him for 24 hours otherwise.
When I go back in time and look at the way everything turned out I realize how lucky we were. Our love story could have turned out much differently than it did, but to be honest I think that our story is a success because of the time we were forced to spend apart. Many months of emailing, instant messaging and rushed phone calls between Arizona and Iraq gave us the opportunity we needed to trust and get to know one another. It was the foundation that led to the amazing communication we now have in our marriage. The communication that has saved us from many a disagreement as a newly wed couple, a military couple and now a law enforcement couple.
Nik was an absolute master at wooing me during those two weeks we had to correspond prior to his deployment. The beauty of his wooing was that he wasn't deliberately trying to do so. He was honest, sincere, genuine and blunt. For those of you who have the privilege of knowing my husband, you know that
Nik has little trouble saying exactly what is on his mind. Exactly as he is thinking it. With absolutely no filter. This works very well for me. It's true, I loved the fact that he took the time to send me my favorite flowers, despite the ridiculous price that goes along with those flowers, before he boarded his jet plane. But what really did it for me was the late night phone calls that seemed to last for hours, the Q and A sessions where I learned so much about his true feelings about the world and the emails that always came so close to professing undying love, but were caged because we wanted to share our feelings in person rather than over electronic communication.
I have absolutely no doubt that I loved
Nik with every ounce of my being when I married him. What I didn't know then was that I would love him more with every minute that passed. The love that I feel for him now astounds me and I can't even fathom how much more I will love him in ten years, I only know that I will.
Here is how I know...
He dances with me even though he absolutely despises dancing
When he smiles he lights up everything inside me
He's the only man my father trusts to take care of daddy's little girl
He makes even a 6'3 female feel dainty, petite and feminine
He looks me right in the eyes when he tells me that he loves me
He supports my profession even if he doesn't understand it
He makes me heart go
pitter patter when he showers me with romance
He is willing to stand with me as I attempt to conquer the world
He doesn't care who knows how much he loves me
He never fails to make me smile and often makes me giggle at his silliness
Our friends and family support and encourage our love
He is going to be the world's greatest father
My friends think he is good enough for me
I am so grateful for what Nik has given me, I only hope I give him just as much. Not one day goes by that I am not thankful for him and our marriage. I can't wait to see what the rest of our lives look like together.
