This is Us | 25 Years
THEN | mar 25 2000
NOW | mar 25 2025
Dear reader: Be reminded that this particular post is our highlight reel and a photo dump of 25 years of marriage. I recognize that many have hard marriages or long for marriage and aren’t in one, or have recently gone through marital loss. I understand that it might be most helpful for you to bypass this post for your own mental health. Please know that no marriage is perfect, but I long to gather these words and my thoughts in one spot to remind myself of God’s goodness in giving me my Jack-man. I sure do love him!
Jack,
We’ve packed a tonne of adventure into 25 years and today I celebrate the Story of Us.
This is us.
You and me.
Me and you.
Married for twenty-five years with another 25+ on the horizon.
When I scan the landscape of my adult life, the through line in my most beautifully mundane and outrageously grand moments is YOU.
We are living a life of adventure and love wrapped up in Saturday chores and the after-supper walks of life, as well as the grander moments of delivery rooms, scuba diving adventures, and mountaintop hikes. And all the in-betweens.
I love our life.
Our story.
YOU.
The past couple weeks I’ve asked myself this question:
What makes us, us?
Who are we as a couple?
I could use heaps of words—we have similar values and principles and life goals. You’re funny and we’re both fun. We love people and exploring and all things local. We’re just two imperfect people trying to love Jesus and love others.
But if I had to pick only one word that describes us as a couple (Incidentally, it also describes us each individually!) and how we live life and how we long to be in this world, it’s this:
We are adventurers.
It’s who God made us to be.
Hello Africa! We miss you.
And yes, we love the big adventures like a belated 25th wedding anniversary celebration in Spain this coming October.
Like our trips across the globe.
But we equally love our free little adventures.
Like eating popcorn for supper and streaming a movie on Netflix; and hiking at Gros Cap with our kids; like spinning tales around the campfire; and walking through the forest preserve near dusk, stumbling upon thousands of fireflies that light up the woods; like yell-singing Country Road with Madison and Jackson on family road trips through National Parks, stopping at random rivers to jump in and swim.
Mostly, just good old-fashioned fun.
In our story, every bend in the road has the potential for adventure.
Honestly, it’s a mindset, and I love that our minds are both set with a compass pointed toward adventure.
Interestingly enough, the word adventure stems from the Latin word adventura,
which means “about to happen.”
I love that.
That IS us.
What’s about to happen?
We LOVE happening into experiences and something sparks joy in us as we step directly into scenes and stories filled with color and uniqueness and culture and diversity and we always do wonder what’s about to happen next?
Most of my very favorite memories of my entire life really are with you by my side!
: : : : :
What if we just waited a few more minutes to see if the sunset gets even better?
What if we take this little side road and see where it goes?
What would happen if we invited a bunch of strangers over for Easter?
What would happen if we went to Africa?
What if we dove with sharks? {No. Come on, it’ll be fun he said. Well, okay.}
What would happen if I wrote a book?
What if we get in the car and try to find the Northern Lights?
What if we get Chinese food and take it to the lake?
What if we go to Roatan and scuba dive at night and see the bioluminescence? {But diving at night freaks me out, I said. But you won’t be able to see this natural phenomenon if you don’t, he said. No. Come on. Okay. But you’re holding my hand the entire time. Deal.}
What if we rent the movie and watch in our pjs instead of going out to the theatre?
What would happen if you bought a motorcyle?
What if we lived a life that just welcomed people into our humble home and our imperfect hearts?
What if we take this rickety boat out into the open Indian Ocean and it capsizes?
What if we try this local restaurant?
What if we hiked this trail that hugs the mountain’s edge?
What if we jump in the car and just drive around Chicago and take photos of whatever we see that intrigues us?
What would happen if we follow this crowd of red and see what they’re rioting about?
What if we walk across the street and meet our new neighbors?
What would happen if we tried playing pickleball?
What if we take the kids for ice cream on the boat?
“What if we go with this stranger who’s beckoning us across the rice paddy?
We would have missed out on THIS ^ incredible scene.
“What if we try this once and see if we like it?”
“Let’s just go see. What’s the worst that could happen?”
: : : : :
It really is how we live our life and as I’ve spent time thinking about our countless adventures, I’ve smiled a thousand smiles.
We’ve had some AMAZING adventures and when I’m in the midst of adventure—big and small—that IS when I feel most alive, most like myself, most free, and who God made me to be.
It’s often in those moments of adventure with you by my side,
when I sense the Love of God and feel His smile on us,
as He sees us being us,
exactly who He created us to be.
He made “us” happen and our best moments together are when we keep Him at the center of our individual lives and in the middle of our marriage and family.
In His goodness, he allowed our paths to cross those decades ago, and He joined us as one in that tiny chapel in Richland, Michigan, twenty-five years ago today, surrounded by our family and friends.
Jack, I’ll forever see God’s goodness and kindness to me when I look at you.
He knew that we belonged together just like the Northern Lights belong to the night sky;
like motorcycles belong on twisty roads;
like dolphins belong on the oceans’ waves;
like turtles belong sunning on the shores of Gull Lake.
He gave us each other.
He really is the giver of all good things. (James 1:17)
And you’re the goodest of all the goodie good things in my life!
I love you.
With all my heart.
Happy 25th!
