dreamboat

 I have always been friendly and cheerful. I laugh at people’s jokes when not everyone thinks they are funny. I genuinely want people to feel accepted and loved when they are around me. It can be confusing, I’ve been told, and sometimes it’s misunderstood. 

I like everyone. I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings. In my younger years, I was less confident. I didn’t know how to tell someone that I wasn’t interested in a romantic relationship. So if someone had the courage to ask me to out with them, I never said no. I went out one time and then avoided ever crossing paths with them again. It created an unhealthy pattern that was difficult to break.

When I met Dale, he was funny and loud and tended to rally a lot of attention to himself and the people around him. I was pretty sure I didn’t want that kind of attention, so I kept him at arms length, but I liked him. He made me laugh. Then he asked me out. I said yes, we were friends, after all. I had no idea we would stay together forever. 

The day he asked me out, we made plans to attend a formal event that was scheduled far enough out that I felt safe committing. Anything could happen in a month. Then, the next night, he called me. “What are you doing tonight?”

I didn’t have plans, so I got dressed and hopped in his car. We drove and talked and drove and talked. It got late so we stopped to eat, and then drove and talked some more. And I was hooked.

Never before had anyone I dated taken a real interest in knowing me. He asked me questions and told me stories. He talked about his family and told me I was pretty. Instead of trying to impress me, he was honest and raw. We talked heart and soul practically all night. 

Little did I know, it was just the beginning. 

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭3:5-6‬ ‭ESV‬‬

https://www.bible.com/bible/59/pro.3.5-6.esv