Happy Anniversary to Us!

He walked into our journalism class each day, just a few minutes before class started. He wore headphones and I wondered what kind of music he was listening to. I read his weekly opinion columns in our school paper. They were hilarious. Sometimes our professor even took time out of our class for all of us to read his columns and appreciate his writing style, his wit and his journalistic sensability.

My roommates and I had a party, so I called him up and invited him. I had only chatted with him a few times during class. Surprisingly, he said yes and dropped by with his roommate, Matt. Across a crowded room I told my friend, "See that guy over there in the red shirt? That's my future husband."

A week or so later, I found his e-mail address and sent him a quick note. He responded and invited me to dinner. (We still have those e-mails.) On May 31, 1999, he picked me up for our first date. He took me to Big Sky Cafe. We chatted about family, school and hometowns. We continued our conversation at Starbucks over apple cider and then strolled along the bank of a small creek that ran through town.

Over the course of the next six years, we've hardly been apart. He continues to floor me with his sense of humor, his intelligence and his compassion. My friends and family adore him, as do I. I can't imagine life without him and am looking forward to spending the rest of our lives together. I only hope that everyone else in the world gets to experience half of the laughter, love and life that I've experienced with him.

Happy anniversary, Brent.

"Love has nothing to do with what you are expecting to get, it's what you are expected to give -- which is everything." - Anonymous