A trio of years
I woke up that morning trying not to think about what was going to happen that night. The free dance at the world championships. Our last eligible performance, the end of our competitive career. Victor was already awake and watching me. When I looked over at him, he leaned toward me and whispered "Will you marry me?" I laughed because we were already engaged and as a matter of fact we had sent a date. August 17th. I told him I'd already agreed to that and he said "No.Tonight. After we skate, no matter what happens." It was impulsive, it was crazy and it was the best idea I'd ever heard.
So that night we went out and skated, winning the world championship, but that's not what I think about when I remember that night. Instead I remember that just after one am on March 29,2003, we stood before a judge and said our wedding vows to one another in front of four of our dearest friends. It wasn't fancy, I wore the dress I had packed for the banquet which happened to be black, and carried the flowers I'd gotten on the podium, but it was perfect. I can't imagine anything being more precious to me than that morning was. Even though we had a formal ceremony in August, it didn't compare to that moment when I became Victor's wife.
Now here we are...three years, three kids and a lot of ups and downs later. Our marriage isn't perfect but no ones is. We still have days when we want to toss one another in front of a speeding bus but that is part of it. We've shared a lot of laughter, a lot of tears and somehow we've managed to come through it together. I know that I can always count on him to support me and to be there when I need a shoulder to cry on or just someone to hold me when I'm down. He's been a part of my life since I was fifteen years old and I can't imagine him not being in it.
There were a lot of things I wanted to say in this post but when I sat down to write them, I found that words escaped me. It's hard to put into words what I feel for him. It's hard to say how I feel when I see him smile at me or play with one of our children, how he makes me feel when he touches me or does something as simple as brush the hair out my eyes when he walks by me while I'm doing something. It's hard for me to express just how happy he makes me and how blessed I feel that we're together.
Marriage isn't easy, it takes a lot of work and despite the fact that we've known each other for fifteen years, we learn something new about one another every day. It's been an incredible journey and I am truly looking forward to the rest of it..the rest of our lives together. Happy anniversary Victor. I love you so very much.