June 2005

I have a story to tell you. It is a love story, with some bumps along the way. I know a very special lady who is getting married next week. She has had quite a few challenges in her life.

She comes from divorced parents. It was not always easy growing up. She had a baby when she was nineteen. Now, it would have been very easy to give up at this point, but instead, she went to school and became a nurse to support her and her child. Then she started a business taking care of others. She became financially stable, even a little comfortable. She and her son began to grow.

However, she continued to choose men who were not healthy for her. She had a marriage and a long-term relationship that were at times destructive. She kept going on. At times, she felt hopeless. But she never gave up.

She decided to focus on getting healthy. She sold her business. She changed her eating and exercise habits. She changed some of the people around her who were not supportive or nurturing. She decided to not push for a relationship.

Then, when she was not trying to meet someone, she did. An absolute loving man, who had gone through junk of his own, so could understand where she was coming from. These two kind, loving people recognized kindred spirits and joined with each other. They decided to make it permanent. They are getting married. They trust and love each other enough to take this risk. They have talked and tested and tried and decided that this is just the beginning of a really wonderful love story.

There are several morals to this story. Not the least of which is never give up hope. Oh, and who is this incredible woman? I am proud to say she is my sister. And may I wish her and her new husband all the love and joy that I can. I love you both!