On Monday morning, I have to say that I woke up at 6am, then again at 7am..my inner alarm clock was going off, but HELLO snooze button! Didn't roll out of bed until 9:30am and that was only because breakfast closed at 10. Jens and I have no problems sleeping in when we can, that's one morning trait we share! Again, we closed down the breakfast place. We took our time enjoying the gorggeeeoousss view (think lush green mountain peaks against blue skies) while opening our 1 year anniversary cards from our wedding guests! It was exciting to pull out our first year cards and read the messages written for us in Thailand one year ago.
First, we got Sebastian, Jens's friend and coworker from Germany, heh heh. Such a sweet but sort of awkwardly random guy. We have been connecting with him on/off this year in Taipei; spent a weeken in Sun Moon Lake with him but the Taiwanese girlfriend situation is driving both of us nuts. Sebastian's message was in german, and of course, it was a bit awkward but he wished us "more children" and a very happy marriage. Thanks, Seb! We're still working towards the first. =)
Then, we got a note from Juliana and Ty. Yay!!! My two favorite people from college who have known me forever. But, before I could start reading it aloud, I started choking up. Woah, that came out of nowhere :) So, Jens took it from my hands. I was sniffling as he read through Ty's message of encouragement and hope that in this first year, we had more good times than tough times. Well said, brother, we totally know what you mean.
While this year was generally wonderful and amazing, we had our fair share of tough times, low moments, painful differences and relational challenges. Of course, it's understandable that every marriage goes through the shifting of tectonic plates to merge together as one unit. But talk about volcanoes. There were times when I felt utterly frustrated, alone and discouraged. Or that I wanted to wage a raging war against the man I loved. Yes, those are times when I wonder, am I schizophrenic? How did we get to this dark place? I'm normally a kind, sweet, loving wife...wait, who IS this female hulk? It's amazing that one's emotions can tip over like the top of a roller coaster and fly into a cold brutal storm or then race into a soaring peak the following week. (that will probably be a different post in reflection of how flyaway emotions need to be curbed with the filling of the fruit of the spirit).Yes...our marriage this year could have been patterned after a roller coaster at times....but I guess that is part of the package for our first year together in addition to the particular "personality" of our marriage. Pastor Jeff Taguchi likens us to "iron sharpening iron" - Jens and I can be the most tough and stubbornest of people, but we will one day be sharpened enough to cause serious damage in the world --TOGETHER. :) So thank you, Ty - we know what you mean. The tough times ain't easy, luckily the BETTER times out-rule them all.
Next up was Alywn's card. Oh Alwyn Swanepoel..I just love his name. Particularly because most people can't pronounce this south african classic but it rolls off my tongue like honey and wine. Of course, the minute Jens starts reading his card, I am sniffling even more. I am thinking about the times we went biking together, the laughter we shared over dinner, the whooping and singing aloud during our triathlons, more laughter, worshipping, the candid conversations we had about God's goodness and truth, and the love poured out so freely and openly from this man's heart. He is truly a walking instrument of God - literally - music and art of the Holy Spirit just pours out from his pores. We were blessed by Alwyn at our wedding, who wrote and sang a very special meaningful song for us. We have yet to get a full recording of it, hopefully soon. It brought tears to both our eyes. We have a few of his prophetic paintings hanging in our house. So special, this guy! His card was funny of course - mainly with the remarks like, "hope that you are still having really good xxx after one year" ..hahaha....and well, hopefully by now, he will be planning is own wedding....yay!!! Looking forward to hearing from Al.
After I wiped the happy tears off my face -- which came not from being a sap (though Jens may argue so), but more from the slight twinge of sadness from having only a short lived moment a year ago where we were surrounded by our dearest loved ones in person. I so miss having these precious friends around me - Al, Juliana, Ty and so many more.... Sometimes, email, skype, WhatsApp, facetime and gchat just doesn't cut it.
We chilled the rest of the day by the pool, sauntered around various hot spring pools, cat napped under the sun. Around 3pm, we realized Jens was burnt. It was a sign: time to go! Packed up and made our way to our next spot. We decided to visit YehLiu Nat'l Geo Park, which is an interesting site of alien looking sand and rock formations along the Northcoast. It was really sticky and humid, both Jens and I were a bit sleepy and lazy as we walked around the famous park. Took a picture with the famous Queens head and headed out for some dinner by the coast! We drove along the highway until we saw a random cafe that looked inviting. It turned out that it was a cute little spot with modern balinese decor. Perfect. We were the only customers for the night, we had the entire place to ourselves. Took a spot by the window and watched bright twinkling lights bobbing over the dark ocean - they were fishing boats getting ready to catch their stock of the night.
Now.... we get to the BEST PART of the night! We decided to re-read our vows to each other again. We wanted to start the 2nd year off being reminded of the vows we spoke in beginning of this marriage. Jens read his vow first. It was so sweet, simple, to the point. :) I smiled as he read it, remembering the looks he gave to me at the altar and savoring his words now, which carries just a tad more depth to it, after going through this year. :) Then I read my vows...all 3 pages of it. We laughed at how much faster I spoke it this time around, and I cried when I got to the part where I told him why I loved him for the kind of man he is. Nothing has changed, but with a years worth of experience, yes...every word carries just a tad more depth to it. It was a sweet and tender moment.
We decided to end the night in a prayer - just asking the Lord to continue leading and guiding us in our marriage, honoring God for all that He has done in our lives thus far, and saying how much we love our Father. The moment we ended our prayer, a song came on. It took me a moment to realize what song it was...... and then the tears started rushing in.....December Joy by George Winston. The wedding song of my heart. Actually, I had chosen this to be my bridesmaid processional, although since the age of 15, I had wanted this to be played while I walk down the aisle. In retrospect, I dont know why I didn't choose it for myself! But unfortunately, the wedding DJ messed up, and played the wrong music, which was incredibly disappointing to me at that time. Of course, in the big picture of the wedding experience, I forgot all about it...until now. I had not heard this piece since before we got married. And earlier throughout the night, the cafe had been playing Britney Spears pop music the whole time. We had sort of tuned it out in our conversation. But, literally, RIGHT AFTER we said Amen, it was quiet and the unmistakable sound of George Winston and the peaceful melody of December Joy started playing. The delicate piano tune filled our room...And I was in awe. Jens and I both sat quietly, listening to the song and crying at the revelation of how much God was affirming that He loves us and is watching over us. We felt so affirmed in our hearts by our Father. It was the most touching moment of our anniversary celebration.
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