I know I promised a post all about relationships, and I will get it up here eventually. I haven't had a chance to work on it for a while, so I am going a different route today, although completely related.
I know I've mentioned my boyfriend a few times on this blog, and I wanted to take this opportunity to kind of just brag on him, because he's phenomenal. And the great thing is he doesn't even know this blog exists, so he can't protest. :)
For those who haven't had the pleasure of meeting him, this is Andrew. And just like every other relationship, Andrew and I have a story. It's a simple story, almost what you'd expect, but to understand why I love bragging on him, our story is a crucial piece of the puzzle.
Before we begin, you have to know certain things about our personalities, specifically that I am a social butterfly and that Andrew is, well, reserved. Or used to be. I've somehow managed to peel back that shell little by little over the years, or so Andrew says. You also need to know that despite our personalities, we ran in very much the same social circles for the majority of our secondary schooling. It seems so trivial, but it plays a role in our story. :)
Andrew and I met in middle school through his best friend Shawn and Shawn's twin sister Shelby. At least, that's the earliest meeting we can remember (unless you count him creeping on me in 6th grade PE, which is also kind of a funny story). We all carpooled to youth group one night, even though Andrew didn't actually attend our church. Somehow, through that one night, Andrew and I became friends. We developed our friendship further over choir rehearsals and overlapping class schedules. I think part of it was our one period of being aides in the library together. We had a LOT of time to talk. By the end of eighth grade, there was rumor that we were an item. And everyone believed it, except, of course, Andrew and me (generally the first two people to know they're in a relationship are the people who are IN a relationship).
Nothing drastically changed in high school, at least not until we officially started dating during our senior year. By then, it was a generally accepted premise that Andrew and I were a unit. One of the things I appreciated most about the experience at that point was that because people knew we were a unit, they were incredibly supportive. Nobody ever questioned us as a couple; it was just an accepted fact. As a couple, we had some of the most loyal friends that could have ever blessed us by being in our lives. Even to this day, I just feel so incredibly blessed to have had that in my life, though some of these incredible people have moved on to bigger and better things.
All that said, here we are, 3 1/2 years in as boyfriend and girlfriend, and it has been one of the most amazing, beautiful, frustrating, irritating, exhilarating, brain-exploding phases of life that I have ever experienced. But it's been 3 1/2 years with my best friend and the absolute love of my life, and he continues to amaze me every day, and that deserves some recognition.
So here's my ode to the amazing man who has walked through some of the craziest years of life with me, and who will walk so many more.
For all his shyness, Andrew is so fun to be around. He is one of the goofiest people I know -- and I know some pretty goofy people. He makes me laugh every day, even on the days I don't think I can. He is constantly looking for ways to make me laugh, because he says he can't be happy if he knows I'm unhappy.
He is persistent. In everything. He never gives up on anything or anyone, no matter how hard it gets.
He is so expressive! His eyes literally light up a room. When he gets excited, his eyes widen like a child on Christmas Day. It is one of the things I absolutely adore about him. The child in him just can't help but jump out sometimes. It's beautiful.
One of the things I have always loved about him is the fact that he is FIERCELY loyal. As a girlfriend, it is so crucial to be able to trust that when your man is out of your sight, he is thinking only of you. Even when we were just friends, Andrew made it clear that he cared about maintaining our friendship because it was important to him. By the time we started dating, I was so confident in his loyalties that I was never concerned about where he was or who he was with, because I knew he was thinking of me.
Related to loyalty is trust. I knew from day one that Andrew was someone I could trust. He's not a perfect human being, but he has never once given me any reason to doubt him.
He is incredibly supportive. I have been through some pretty
intense days and weeks in the last few years, and he has been there for me
every time.
Everything I dislike about myself, he loves. He loves my
flaws. This is one that gets me every time. When I start to complain that “I’d
like to change this about myself”, he is there to tell me every reason why I
shouldn’t. And he always wins that argument, because frankly, there’s really
nothing better than a man who accepts your flaws and your imperfections, no
matter how badly you want to change them.
He takes care of me when I’m sick. Without fail, he comes
over to hang out with me every time I’m sick, even though he won’t let me come
over when he’s sick to return the favor. He makes sure I have everything I
need, including water, vitamins, food, and rest, and he won’t leave until there’s
someone else to take care of me. And
sometimes even then.
One of the other things I appreciate most about Andrew is
simply that he listens. He postpones everything in his life to be available to
me, including sleep. Even if we can’t hang out or have a conversation at the
precise moment I want it, he always remembers to ask about it as soon as he
does have a chance to talk.
He doesn’t let me get away with saying “I’m fine”. Ever. As
women, we are notorious for using those two words as a test of our man’s
insight into our psyche. But Andrew reads them every time. He will not take “I’m
fine” as an answer because he knows there’s always something deeper going on,
and he wants to get to the bottom of it. It’s annoying at the time, but I
always feel so much better when it’s out on the table.
He is proud of even the little accomplishments. When I
finish a big paper or project, he jumps for joy. Well, maybe not, but he is
always happy and excited for me. After all the stress of a big project like a
work sample, it’s nice to know that even if it went poorly, he is proud of me for
sticking it out and following through.
He is not afraid to call me out on things I need to be
called out on. If I’m being mean to him, he’ll tell me. If I’m ignoring him, he’ll
make sure I know that my behavior is not okay. When I start falling into
annoying habits, he alerts me to the fact. Relationships are a two-way street,
and that includes being honest about your feelings and your shortcomings.
One of the other things I absolutely, flat-out marvel at is
that he is INSANELY good with kids. When we visited his family in California
last summer, he rocked his baby cousin to sleep just by looking at him. It was
heartbreakingly beautiful, and one of the most precious things I have ever
witnessed.
Every time he texts me, he spells love with a capital L. It
used to drive me crazy. I am a grammar fanatic, so misspellings and accidental
caps-lock situations tend to frustrate me. But as time wore on, I realized it
was one of the things I adored about him. He has never taken our relationship
for granted, and Love with a capital L is just one of the many ways he proves
that. It seems like a silly little quirk, but to me, it makes so much sense.
I guess that’s what it comes down to. Everything he does, he
does out of love. It’s a mystery to me how I am so incredibly blessed. And there
are so many more reasons why he’s awesome. This list just scratches the
surface. All I know is that one of these days, I get to marry this amazing,
incredible, PHENOMENAL man. And even if it takes a couple years, I will be content to wait, because he is more than worth it. :)
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