Always holding him in my soul
I stand amazed at what love and time can do. I have looked at things differently from the moment I saw Greg standing at the alter, waiting for me.

In committing my life to him, I accepted that all of the roads I had taken in my lifetime had led me to him. The hard roads and the easy roads. I was letting the past be my lessons learned and moving on to this new life, consumed by partnership and void of just myself. I was the woman who walked down the aisle as a blushing bride, in awe of the man who was standing before me with the smile on his face that I loved so much. And I walked up that same aisle as a new wife to a man she loves, respects, admires and adores. I could not imagine spending a day without him. The man who knows all of my weaknesses and never uses them against me. He knows all of my strengths and encourages every single one of them.

There is so much about marriage I have yet to learn, but if I know anything at this point it is that I have married an amazing man who warms my heart and stirs my soul. He loves me and all that I am and he has never asked me to be something I am not. He shares in my dreams and supports me in everything that I do. He is firm in his values, loves his family and friends, and he works hard at everything that he does. I have tried many times to put into words what grows in my heart, but Sarah McLachlan puts what my heart says into words much better then I ever could;

Every time I look at you
The world just melts away
All my troubles all my fears
Dissolve in your affections
You've seen me at my weakest
But you take me as I am
When I fall you offer me a softer place to land

You stay the course you hold the line you keep it all together
You're the one true thing I know I can believe in
You're all the things that I desire
You save me, you complete me
You're the one true thing I know I can believe

I get mad so easy but you give me room to breathe
No matter what I say or do
'Cause you're too good to fight about it
Even when I have to push
Just to see how far you'll go
You won't stoop down to battle
But you never turn to go

Love is just the antidote
When nothing else can cure me
There are times I can't decide
When I can't tell up from down
You make me feel less crazy
Otherwise I'd drown
But you pick me up and brush me off
and tell me I'm okay
Sometimes that's just what we need to get us through the day


I could search the rest of my life for words like this and I could not say it the same. I also know that in time these words will change. They will be deeper and more full of emotion then they are today. They will have seen more hard and sad days along with happiness and celebrations and my lyrics may then include, "Even though you thought about it, I am glad you did not leave." "With all my love, all these years, you are still the sunshine in my day and strength when I have lost my own." For now my soul is part of his and where he goes, so do I. At least my heart, that is.

I married a wonderful man a month ago today. I can see how quickly a month will become 50 years. Right now, our happy home is full of our laughter and our puppy's bark. In years to come I hope that it will be filled with babies laughter, children playing, birthday parties and afternoons of a happy family just being together. I look at Greg and see all of the things I value in life; love, integrity, happiness, honesty, persistence, sense of self and a spiritual nature. In one person, I found all the things I could ever love in anyone and want for myself.

I remain forever-
Natalie Culpepper