Happy Anniversary!
I thought that since tomorrow is my Anniversary, I would tell the story about how my husband and I met.
At the time, I was working as a locum tenens physician. Locum tenens is Latin for “holds the place of.” In other words, a locum physician works temporary jobs while a clinic or hospital is looking for a full time physician or if another physician is on extended leave.
I was having a fine time traveling all around the Midwest working in Wisconsin, Michigan, and North Dakota. When I came to Jamestown, North Dakota, I was only planning on a three month stay. I guess God had other plans.
Dana and I met via that internet at a Christian singles site and started e-mailing. Very quickly, we realized that we wanted to get to know each other better. We exchanged phone numbers and began talking. A few weeks later, August 20th, we had our first date and we quickly realized that we had a similar background and upbringing. We also shared a strong faith in God.
He’s fond of reminding me that when we first met, I told him honestly that I was only planning on being in Jamestown until October. I also said that I didn’t want children and he remembers being very disappointed on both points. 
Since I was already 32, I had given up on the idea of having children and had convinced myself that I didn’t want them after all.
My time at the Jamestown clinic was drawing to a close, but they still hadn’t signed another physician, so I extended my stay.
In October, instead of moving on to another state, I became engaged. The next March, we married…on my birthday…so I could remember our anniversary. (I’m terrible at remembering dates!)
Now, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend that people do what we did, LOL. We met in the summer of 1998, got married in March of 1999 and had our first baby a year later in May of 2000. Having a series of major life changes–even good ones–is very stressful.
We’ve had a few bumps in the road, but thank heaven, he’s so very kind, patient, and understanding. It’s so wonderful to be married to a man who has always been so supportive of any dream a set my face toward.
Over the last couple of years, I have come to realize that I haven’t been the best wife I could be. I find it so hard to juggle everything. (Would you like a little cheese with your whine, Tamera?)
When I worked outside the home, I had a very demanding job. What’s more, I commuted to Jamestown 80 miles one way! During part of the time, we had two houses; one that we were renting in Jamestown, and our home in rural Kintyre.
When I quit my job, I had a newborn, a two year old and a four year old. I didn’t have a handle on how to keep house…or on how to keep a husband. I didn’t make time for him. My priorities were all out of whack.
I also had a lot of emotional baggage that needed to be unpacked, evaluated, and dealt with. How he has hung on through those difficult months in my life, I’ll never know this side of heaven.
But, I thank God that he has hung on. I thank God that his commitment to our marriage is stronger than my attempts to push him away. I thank God for him every day!
Happy Anniversary, Dana!
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