Once Upon a Time ... The Beginning of Our Story

Once upon a time there was a young girl who was a freshman in high school.  She noticed "the new guy" at school who was a junior and had just moved to a part of the girl's home-county.  Oh how she thought he was the cutest boy she had ever laid her eyes on!

Time passed and one afternoon during her sophomore year (and his senior year) the girl and her friends from band were going to the practice field for competition practice.  She saw the boy talking to several of his friends while passing through the hallway ... 

and their eyes met ... and then ----

Nothing for the next couple of years.  They passed each other at school and at ball games
... but never spoke a word to each other 
until ----

The spring semester of her freshman year at the hometown university and his junior year at the same university.  She was waiting on her Mother to pick her up for a doctor's appointment and he was walking into the student center ... 

and they spoke & smiled ... 

"Hi" ...

Once again time passed ... but only a couple of months until they began chatting at the student center.  That summer she saw his family's band at the local amusement park... and then a little more time passed ... 

the fall semester of her sophomore year and his senior year of college ... 

And he asked her out ... 

So, as amazing as going on that date was with him, the second date was even more amazing ---- 

and they dated for the next 8 months ... 

 And then they eloped.

Still living their fairytale adventure, their only child was born before their second anniversary.  And their family was complete.  

And so, for the next 28 years they lived in wedded bliss and now are coming upon their 30th anniversary ...

Hold on, storyteller ... 

while everything in this story is true, it's the last sentence that --- that ... well, let's just say that maybe their story has more in the middle than this fairytale suggests.  The first verse of the Mark Schultz song Love Walked In seems to provide a more accurate depiction ...

All alone in a great big house

Nothing left but an empty vow

And two hearts that had all but given up

Bag packed and he said goodbye

But he’s sitting in the car outside

Looking at a ring and a reason not to run

the brokenness

the reconciliation

the grace

the restoration

the mercy

the redemption

the story of us
continues

In my next post I will share "the middle"