I Blinked and It Was 23 Years Later

June 24, 1988 was a hot day as was the case for the entire spring. It was just days before Yellowstone National Park began to burn. But I remember it mostly as the day I became Mrs. Steven Lortz.

On June 25, 1988 we got into my loaded down Subaru hatchback with a U-Haul strapped to the top, filled with wedding gifts. We were headed to Phoenix where Steve had already been going to college for a year. We were young, idealistic and the world was just waiting for us to discover it. By the time we arrived in Phoenix 2 days later, our air conditioner had gone out and it was 113 degrees....every day for the entire summer. I dubbed it "the summer of 113". Ever tried looking for a job in a car with no air conditioning and it's 113+? Let me tell you, it isn't pretty. By then I had fallen in love with the Saguaro cactus and was so excited for my new life, my new adventure.

I haven't been disappointed. Things haven't always gone the way we wanted or would have liked but it's always been an adventure. As I lay in bed trying to wake up this morning, I recalled to myself all the things we have been through together, the ways we've succeeded and yes, even our failures. I don't know that I would change a second of it. We've had seasons of little with lots of wants and seasons of much with little to want. At times we had less than $1 in our checking account and not a cent of savings. Those are some of the best times we've spent together. In those early years our post-marital dates were drives in the desert with a packed lunch. When we had a few extra dollars we got to go out for a $4.25 pizza and $1 movie. We never felt badly about it either. We knew when Steve graduated we'd conquer the world and until then, we settled for 39 cent soda refills and a drive to look at houses we'd buy one day. We never worried for a second.

We've been unbelievably blessed to travel to some amazing places....from the mountains of Alaska and the green hills of Germany to the beaches of Hawaii, Jamaica and Haiti; from the Statue of Liberty to the Space Needle of Seattle; from the swamps of Florida to the Missions of Texas; from the green ocean of the Atlantic to the blue ocean of the Pacific and points too numerous to count in between. We've moved 12 times, all of those in the first 15 years. We've owned 15 cars (yes, I used to have a problem) and 3 houses. We've had the privilege of living in 4 different states, all very different from the one before and the one after! We've had amazing jobs, working in industries we always wanted to and accomplished things we never thought possible.

We've suffered much loss...Steve's grandpa, his grandma, my aunt, my grandma, his dad, my uncle, my dad and his uncle. We've survived financial distress, infertility, sickness, disease (x2), loss of jobs due to downsizing and corporate buyouts and many, many deployments. I watched with much pride as that amazing, brave soul eagerly went to war in lands afar. He was confident, secure and all too ready to defend our freedoms here and secure those same freedoms for the oppressed and weak. We've thrived in occupations where others have crumbled. Quite a bit of our time together has actually been apart. We don't know any differently and it's worked for us. We've heard that absence makes the heart grow fonder and my heart is quite fond of my fair-haired, blue-eyed prince.

That list is astounding for me to recall. It is by the grace of God alone that we grew together. It is our individual pursuit of a relationship with Christ that has caused us to draw closer to each other.

There is nobody on this earth who understands me like Steve does. At times he knows and understands me better than I know and understand myself. He knows my stories, gets my jokes (and still laughs at them), is familiar with my quirkiness, my shortcomings, my failures and my insecurities. He loves me anyway. He protects me, fights for me (for us) and adds so much joy to my world.

I went to bed a new bride and awoke this morning, 23 years later. In my groggy waking up time I heard the shower running and my heart was happy.