Today is our twenty-fifth anniversary. And I know it’s kind of cliche to say so, but I love Tim so much more today than I did on the day we walked down the aisle. It’s not even really hard to explain. I have had twenty-five years of experiencing him consistently, continually laying his life down for me and our family; making decisions time after time after time to prefer others, to do the hardest task, to take the least preferred anything for himself.

Tim is the one who gets up in the middle of the night with sick kids. He shuttles them to Tae Kwon Do. He helps with laundry. He preps gardens and trims fruit trees and mows the lawn. He kills spiders and catches bats (ick!) and cleans up puppy accidents. He gives me backrubs for meeting exercise goals, or if I’m tired, or if he just knows my day has been rough. He changes the oil, and changes the brakes, and changes the tires. He restocks toilet paper in the bathrooms, and unloads the dishwasher, and puts away groceries.

Tim is not naturally sympathetic or emotional. Words of affirmation are not his strong suit, and I’m not sure he has a poetic bone in his body (though he does put forth valiant – often humorous – efforts for birthdays and anniversaries). And, to be honest, I’ve had moments in the past twenty-five years when I have wished for romantic gestures and gushing sentiment. But always – ALWAYS – when I consider who he is and all he does for me, I conclude that there isn’t a single thing about him that I would trade away to instead be swept off my feet for a moment.

We have gone through hard times, we have butted heads, we have yelled. We have apologized, we have forgiven, we have tried again. We still can get on each other’s nerves occasionally. I could probably do better at supporting instead of trying to force my way. He could probably do better at…something, I’m sure. But we have learned to not expect perfection from one another. We’ve learned that everyone needs mercy, sometimes. We’ve learned that grace is undeserved and to [try to] show it even when it’s hard.

I might be guilty of taking Tim for granted, at times, but mostly, I am acutely aware of how much I depend on him, am blessed by him, and hope to never have to figure out how to live this life without him. Next to Jesus, he is the best decision I have ever made and I truly love him more than words can say.