Hey there,
Today, I thought I would share with you a little love story of mine.
Sixteen years ago in March of 2005, I was in Virginia getting ready to graduate from college in a few short months and was preparing to visit Miami, Florida to explore the possibilities of my next steps into the real world. My best guy friend at the time and I were talking about my trip and what I would be doing there. I was planning to check out an inner city organization that helped kids in downtown Miami through music.
At that time, little did I know that this person would actually be someone that I love so dearly today!
(This is one of the first pictures of us during Halloween in 2005 with me as Count Chocula and him as a mad scientist. Though a little embarrassing, it's out there on the internet already, so I might as well share it here!)
It turns out that he was nervous I may move so far away and we would lose touch since he was still in school and had a couple more years until his graduation. He had liked me for a long time and I had no idea! Our friendship had become very close and we entertained the idea of dating. We talked about what a relationship between us might look like if we were to live in different states and against all probability, we decided to try out the long-distance thing.
I did end up moving to Miami for about a year and half and then even further away to Colorado, yet we stuck together. We talked on the phone every day and took cheap flights to visit each other a few times a year. After he graduated in 2007, he saved up enough to be able to move to Colorado with me. That next spring, we went on a hike with our dog and he asked me to marry him. We planned our wedding and in November 2009, we got married in the presence of our friends and family.
Now here we are in 2021, coming up on the 16th year of our relationship and though not every moment has been wonderful, I am so grateful that he has been by my side through all of them.
Something I learned from this whole experience of falling in love with my best friend is that it takes stellar communication, a willingness to compromise, and your partner’s support of your dreams to create a thriving Partnerhood. Without our continued support of each other, I don’t think we would have lasted this long.
I’ve grown to become so thankful for a partner who I can depend on no matter what life brings us, including many job changes, financial hardships, lots of moving, having kids, and a global pandemic (we definitely didn’t see THAT coming!).
So hopefully, whatever life has in store for you and your partner, I hope you can stick together through anything that comes your way. If you find yourselves needing a little guidance, you can always check out my online course here.
Lots of love,
Christie Sears Thompson
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist
The Partnerhood (www.thepartnerhood.com)
Trade Winds Therapy & Relationship Coaching (www.tradewindstherapy.com)
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