My husband, Lane, turns 32 today. We’ve been together since we were 18 years old- in a sense, we have “grown up” together, meeting when we were still practically babies! What a ride it’s been. Here are the words I can gather together for this man that means so much to me on his birthday. If you want to read about the best gift I ever gave to him, find it here.
Lane, this is what I know about you:
You are adventurous. So many of my favorite memories with you involve the outdoors, from you teaching me how to rock climb in college to you encouraging me to jump off of the “cliff of courage” in Mexico this past fall, from climbing 14ers to backpacking in Utah, from us climbing the Manitou Incline to teaching our girls to embrace getting dirty in nature. You parachute. You surf. You shoot guns. You backpack and rock climb and hike and run. You help me be brave. You get into the wild and love a good {but calculated} thrill.
You see people. Yes, you care about people but it goes deeper than that. You see them. You see their stories because you take the time to ask them. I don’t even know the number of hitchhikers you have picked up any more… if someone is in need, you stop to help. And the stories you have gained from those rides! Sometimes you need to remind me to take a step back and have some grace… They must have a lot of wounds in their life to respond in that way… you tell me. You have grace and love and compassion and love and grace and you act on it.
You are strong. The physical and mental toughness that it requires to become an Army Ranger boggles my mind. What you put your mind to, you accomplish. What you wish to excel at, you do. Not because everything comes naturally to you {though so much does it is completely annoying} but because you work hard and you train your mind and your body to do what you want them to do. What you have encountered in training and in war has turned you into a warrior. But you believe in justice and you believe in peace. You defend the defenseless and protect the hurting. But it’s not simply physical strength that I see in you… your passions, your convictions, your integrity, your dedication, your discipline… you will not let yourself be compromised.
You love Jesus. With passion. Anytime a speaker asks the audience to think of people that have impacted their faith, I don’t think of a mentor and I don’t think of a college roommate or friend or coworker… I think of you. You make me better. You show me a better way to live, to love, to think, and it is based on your love for Jesus and how he has changed you. And it doesn’t end with me. In Iraq and in Afghanistan and in the halls of the local high schools and on the soccer field with your players… you make us all better. We all think of you when we need to think of someone who impacted their faith. So many could echo my words.
You are fun. When we’re shopping, you throw in a bag of candy “just because.” You make blended margaritas on Saturday afternoons because “why not?” We went laser-tagging for your 30th birthday. You don’t take yourself too seriously and make sure we have a good time.
You are an amazing daddy. You are the light in our girls’ eyes. And they don’t know it yet, but you will become their standard in what they look for in a boyfriend and a husband. All men will be measured against you because you love them so well. A request to dance? You turn on Disney music. Daddy will you play? You’re on the ground building a tower or finding the best hiding place in the house. You sneak them chocolate chips when I’m not looking, make sure they know they’re beautiful whether they’re wearing a princess dress or pajamas, but also made sure they know how to climb a tree and how to hike the Colorado mountains. You’re already planning your first snowboard trip with Brennan, when you can start coaching their soccer teams, and wondering how early is too early to teach rock climbing. You are a good Daddy because you are involved, but more so because they know because they know because they know that they are precious in your eyes.
You are my rock. You reel me in, you keep me grounded, you are my solid ground when I have none. You are the steady to my waver, the logic to my passion, the details to my dreams. You are the anchor to my ship, the encouragement to my doubt, the love to my fear.
In this picture here, the night we got engaged on top of a mountain at sunset in 2004, I had an idea of what I was getting in you… but I had no idea. As Helen Keller said, Life is either a daring adventure or nothing at all, and you, my love, are taking me on the very best adventure I could have ever asked for.
what do you think?