Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

It has been said that "silence is golden," and if that is the case then surely I have proven that by not having posted anything in almost a year.

This past weekend my husband was out of town, our first time being apart in the six months we've been married. The house was too quiet, and I missed him terribly, so I decided to go and read some of his old blog posts, the result being that I was inspired to update and re-vamp my own humble blog. I don't pretend to possess nearly the eloquence he does, but hopefully I can make this site a bit more entertaining. Perhaps I will even enjoy it so much that I will do a better job of keeping it up!

Right now I am sitting on the couch in our apartment in Tucson, AZ, listening to my iPod, the sounds of typing (myself and my husband in the next room - I'm blogging, he's writing a paper for class - what does that say about our lives?), the wind chimes outside, and laundry in the next room. The smell of coffee is wafting from the kitchen. There is definitely a sense of "home" here and now.

Tory returned home last night from a Moot Court Competition in Vermillion, SD. As I picked him up from the airport, I was reminded of all the many times in our relationship when we met each other at airports. The first time I came to visit him here in Tucson, he accidentally went to the wrong arrival gate, and I remember stopping at the bottom of the stairs in a state of confusion, looking around for him. I remember the excitement of seeing him arrive at the airport in Indianapolis, and the rush of emotion every time he was waiting for me when I arrived. There was a similar rush when I saw him walk down those same stairs I walked down, lo those many moons ago, and the cliché certainly proved true - absence does make the heart grow fonder.

The past six months of being married to him have been something of a roller coaster ride, learning what it is to be married, to be in love, to live with someone, and to have to stand up for what I believe when I disagree with someone who means the world to me. One thing that I have learned is that the decision we made to get married is ultimately worth it. There may be arguments, disagreement, sleepless nights, and exasperation, but he is the man I have chosen to spend my life with, as I am the woman he has chosen for himself. Surely, love is more than just the feelings and the passion we feel towards another person. It is also the choice we make to look past the deficiencies of our spouses and ourselves, and love each other all the more as we see each other for who we are.

So as I still hear the sounds of the laundry, wind chimes, and typing, I am increasingly thankful for the man God has placed in my life, and the fact that he is again safely at home.