Togetherness

As I was sitting in my favorite spot the other day eating my favorite food and drinking my favorite drink I experienced a flood of short conversations I've had recently. Not the ones in my head, mind you, but rather chit chats with Mary, my Mom, Chad and, o.k., maybe a few from my head. I'll spare you the backstory that led me to this place, but all at once I realized I am enjoying a great sense of togetherness right now. Not that I don't normally, but it's always a good time to take stock in the many small and big graces I both enjoy and take for granted. And not that I'm 'happy' or 'carefree,' because words like that don't ever tell the story-no, it's more of a deep-seeded sense of togetherness.

I'll explain. Mary is getting her MBA right now and so the simpler life we enjoyed until September waved bye-bye, at least for Mary. But, this new challenge affords creative ways to spend time together. I had the privilege of putting together a short video for her last big group Organization Development presentation (no one else had a video in theirs) this past week. It wasn't a paying gig, but it was rich in time and creativity spent together.

This month is a month of celebration for Mary and I: both of our birthdays, our anniversary, Christmas, nephew birthdays, brother-in-law birthdays. Exhausting! And one of the joys is getting to eat and laugh and play games with our family. These precious times are here, right now, ripe for the picking. We're both so grateful for those in our family who encourage and challenge and love on us. It's a good day being together with family.

I get to meet my dear friend Chad at Starbucks every single week. We talk shallow, deep and anything in-between. We've been getting together every week for something like 6 years now.

Mary and I get to take Tabby to the 'parky' a lot this time of year and watch her frolick in the snow. She absolutely loves the snow and can't get enough. So, more Mary, Troy and Tabby time...together.

And today Mary and I celebrate 3 years of marriage together. She is the beautiful-inside-and-out woman who talks me through sleeplessness, pursues laughter, stays in shape (and keeps me in shape,) challenges herself, desires peace, lives a raw determination yet balances the chaos, spends time every single day being quiet and enjoying God, has became the loving adoptive mother of my doggy daughter, cherishes my family and so much more. Every day of being married holds new promise and I'm grateful to Mary for helping me see life in a way I never could have experienced it. I only hope I can be this for you, Mary.

At the end of the day-when I've given up on an unreturned e-mail, read one too many news stories, been disillusioned by empty promises-togetherness is a gift I can't hope to parse with words.