1974

I'm not sure what we were looking at?  :)

Just look at that face! You see why I fell in love with her. Then, look at my hair...wow! It was nice while it lasted, and before you ask, it was all natural. No perm.

It has been great having this time off. It's been very strange for me as I've only had two weeks off in a row one previous time in my adult life! (Well, other than the 8 months I had off for my cancer treatment. But that was totally different)

My bride and I are high school sweethearts. We came together at an important time in our lives as individuals and then as a couple. The most important detail I would want you to know is that it was soon after we both became Christians that we met. It was a time when we were making all kinds of life and lifestyle changes and meeting lots of new friends. Keep in mind we were still teenagers and made some mistakes. But, we grew with those choices and moved on. Most of them we didn't repeat more than once or twice.

Decades later, and in the middle of a Pandemic, we have lots of time together. I am so thankful for this time and the way we spend it. I have come to the understanding that I am a visitor here during the day. And that isn't a bad thing at all. She has had the house to herself for many years. She has patterns, schedules, and tasks that fill her day. On the other hand, I would be gone by 8:00 and not home till after 6:00. We would also have the weekends when I didn't work together that we looked forward to. Now it is, "six Saturdays and then a Sunday." It is an adjustment, but one we are enjoying.

I would encourage you to make the most of this time together. Consider it a gift. We are finishing home projects that need to be done. I am helping with the cooking and enjoying it! We take walks. We talk. We dream about what we want to do when we can get out and about again. We chose to consider this time as practice for retirement. It's not that far away, and I have to tell you, I am thankful for it!