April 16, 2005
15 years.
In some ways, it feels like yesterday.
In other ways, it feels like it’s been FOREVER.
At our core, we’re still the same. Terence and Eardie. The two lovebirds that met at FAMU. We still giggle. Tell corny jokes. Some that are unspoken… a look into each other’s eyes followed by fits of uncontrollable laughter. Our own private language that no one else understands. The stories… the ones that we share so that others may be encouraged, and then the stories that no one else knows. The conversations. The stuff that you wouldn’t dare tell anyone, not even your spouse. The stuff you’ll take to your grave. Praise God for the partner He’s given us to release our secrets, to share our burdens and lighten our hearts. We share our deepest wishes. Our regrets. Our shame. Our dreams… The friendship. That’s our not-so-secret sauce. The thing that people see when they think we’re such a cute couple and wonder what our secret is. The secret is… we not only love each other, but we genuinely like each other. When you want to go hang with your crew… we’re each other’s crew. 15 years of marriage, 22 years of love, it hasn’t gotten old yet. That’s the part that feels like we just started yesterday.
But we’ve grown. No longer are we two teenagers on “The Set”. Now we’re parents, and business partners, and home owners, and ministry leaders, and philanthropists… the stuff that has made us grow up. We exhausted all of the petty battles until we got to the core of what needed healing. Thank God for His grace. We’ve learned to lean on each other instead of push each other away. We’ve learned to leverage each other’s strengths to cover for the other’s weaknesses, instead of shaming the one that has room to grow in a certain area. For we both have room to grow… We’ve exposed our vulnerabilities to one another. It keeps us humble and gives us both reasons to pray for each other. We’ve had enough conflict that we’re no longer afraid of it. We still don’t like it. But we know we’ll come out on the other side, holding hands, with a new lesson and another reason to thank God. We’ve learned to forgive each other and to see and acknowledge how our behaviors affect one another. We’ve seen enough to know that there’s so much that we haven’t seen yet. We know enough to know that there’s still so much we don’t know and that we’d better trust God through it all. Although we still look at each other through the lens of those two teenagers, we see the grey hairs, too. And at times, we find it hard to recall times beyond when “us” began. Feels like forever.
15 years. Love. Fights. Passion. Adventures. Babies. Books. Businesses. Bills. Ministry. Laughter. Tears. Friendship. Frustration. Uncertainty. Growth. Gratitude.
Happy Anniversary to Us. ❤️