The Other Half of My Two

In Our Town by Thornton Wilder, one of my favorite plays, are found these lines that spring into my mind on this Valentine's Day...

Stage Manager: You know how it is: you're twenty-one or twenty-two and you make some decisions; then whisssh! you're seventy: you've been a lawyer for fifty years, and that white-haired lady at your side has eaten over fifty thousand meals with you.  How do such things begin?

Mrs. Gibbs: People are meant to live two by two in this world...

Two by two.  It doesn't always work out that way, and I know that full well.  As I think of ones I love whose dream of "two by two" fell apart, my heart aches on this Love Day that can be so hard for those in that situation.

How humbled I am that God has given me the other half of my two.

How grateful.

How blessed that this man by my side in...what?...1998 or maybe 1999...

 ...was also by my side in 2000...

 ...and in 2001 when Josiah was just a little bean inside me...

 ...and in May of 2002 when Josiah was making his presence much more known...

 ...and in June of 2002, five days before Josiah's birth.

How blessed I am that the same wonderful man was by my side this morning during a very romantic Valentine's morning date.  ;-)

OK, not really.  It wasn't romantic AT ALL.  We were at the health department for Moriah and Shav to get shots, and it was pretty much awful.  Poor Shav.  Poor, poor Shav.  He had to get four shots, and he was so little the last time he got any shots that he didn't remember it, and he was so nervous and sad about it, and he cried and cried.  And then Moriah, sympathetic soul that she is, cried and cried, too.  Every other time she's had shots, she's gotten over them very quickly, but not this time--not with her beloved brother carrying on at the top of his lungs.  Oh my!

But as I was saying, I was blessed--very, VERY blessed--to have Jeff with me.  His willingness to take some time off work to come and help me meant more to me than a dozen red roses.  Or tulips.  Which reminds me...

Here are some of the things Jeff has done this week that have communicated love to the deepest part of my heart:
1. On a night when I'd had a pretty awful day and was feeling as grumpy as a bear just awakened from hibernation, he talked with me gently and without judgment.  My own conscience was smiting me with all its might and I didn't need anyone else to tell me how terrible I was being.  His kindness was exactly what my weary heart needed.
2. He brought me red tulips, which I like better than red roses and which I look forward to planting in my tulip flowerbed after we finish enjoying every little bit of beauty they're providing indoors now.  Fresh flowers in the winter always seem like such a LUXURY to me, and I feel pleasantly spoiled by these.  :)

3. He bought 20 containers of coffee yogurt--my favorite!--for me.
4. He also bought chocolate raisins for me.
5. He carried in a bunch of wood so our porch would be well-stocked before the big snowstorm came.
6. He shoveled my parents' walk and ours, too.
7. In the evenings, he interacted with the kids to their great delight: playing Khet with the boys, wrestling, tickling, letting Moriah climb all over him, etc.  Not only does it bring joy to my heart to see and hear our kids having so much fun with their daddy, it also serves the practical purpose of giving me time to do kitchen tasks immediately after supper when I actually have enough energy to do them, rather than waiting until much later when all the kids are in bed and I have to really talk myself into tackling a messy kitchen because at that point, I would MUCH rather procrastinate on it!  ;-)
8. He started dreaming about--and sketching--a front porch for our house.  :)
9. Today he called me from work and said, "You shouldn't have to cook on Valentine's Day.  How about if I bring home pizza?"  Well, I couldn't say no to that.  :)
10. He wrote this on Facebook this morning, and it's been warming my heart ever since.
I have had 18 Valentine's Days to spend with you... the first, just as an onlooker, fellow student, observing a bright, happy, serving student at Jerusalem University College. You caught everyone's attention with your humble and cheerful spirit.... and that seemingly permanent smile on your face. Your sincerity was never questioned, your reputation flawless. I am still in awe that you are mine and I am yours. I certainly never felt deserving of your love or companionship. I still remember trusting my secret interest in you with two people: Jonathan Fickley and Prof. Lancaster. Fickley made famous the "carpe diem" phrase for me and encouraged me to seize the opportunity before you were gone. And Steve Lancaster's facial expression still strikes my memory, a bit of incredulity, as if to say "You with her!?" "Really?" And then to hear him talk about how special you were, repeating the things I had already observed in your character: your glowing smile, your readiness to serve without notice or reward, your humility, your sharpness, your beautiful spirit, and your tenderness. He said it without saying it, "If you catch her, you have "upgraded" and you better not hurt her!" Its been an amazing whirlwind of love, adventure, growth, and pain. We have done it together. We have done it in opposition and we have done it in favor. We have stood the trials in ease, and in effort, together, in love, faithful, steadfast, and with eager expectation of the future. I would not trade our journey for another; because of you, I have no regrets. I love you Davene Fisher!

I am humbled, I am grateful, I am BLESSED to be the other half of Jeff's two.  It has been a very happy Valentine's Day.   :)