We did not meet until we were in our 30s, but we found out that our paths crossed much earlier than that. I was born in North Omaha, adopted, and grew up in Sioux City, Iowa. I lived down the alley from John's cousins. When I was in 5th grade, a new school opened two blocks from my house. The first summer, in honor of that they hosted a summer week long program. Every day there were games, food, fun, and crafts on the playground. I was there every day. John was visiting his cousins, so he was there too. If we met, neither of us remember, but God had us there at the same time. Many years later, after we were married, yes we did meet again, I found my birth family through one of John's childhood friends. You see her brother was married to my sister. John would have met Paula's brother and my sister when they met in Omaha and were married.
With the history we had and didn't know it, it would be half a lifetime before we actually met, fell in love, and put all the pieces together. I often wonder if we had been believers then, and allowing God to lead, if we would have been together much sooner than we were. I wonder if parts of our life would have been very different. Of course the story as it played out shows what God can do in a life, and how He arrainged His plans all around us, in spite of us and our actions. We have always been able to enjoy the same music, long talks, and humor. We do love to laugh. We have both done some pretty silly things, but we can laugh at ourselves. Those memories are always there to recall from time to time, and then we get to laugh all over again. One day we went shopping with John's Mom at Brandeis in Omaha. There was a column close to where we were shipping. It had a small hole drilled in it, for some reason. John got my attention, and told me to look in the hole. I wasn't sure, but he convincingly told me I had to see this, it was really something. I fell for it, and stood in the middle of a busy store with my eye up to a hole in a column. When I realized he had "gotten" me, we had a good laugh. He is a story teller, and he can make up stories, and convince you they are real, until he comes to the punch line.
Of course one of the funniest things ever was a phone call. That was back when they had pay phones and some you could drive up to so you didn't have to get out of the car. John pulled up, got his quarter out, put the phone up to one ear, and proceeded to put the quarter in his ear instead of the slot in the phone. We laughed so hard, we couldn't breathe. We love laughing together, and it sometimes doesn't take much to set us off. We do have our serious sides, and there have been so many times John has been my hero. He is a Godly man, who has encouraged my walk with Christ. I don't always like to have him hold me accountable, but He is usually right, and He knows what I need to be doing.
Mostly we are a team. He has strengths I don't have, and I have strengths he doesn't. We complete each other. Sometimes he has to be the strong one and pick me up from where I fell. Other times I get to be the strong one for him. We are equal, but different. We are different, but the same. And we have gone through trials, that our God has gotten us through. We are part of God's triangle. I am at the bottom on one side. John is on the bottom on the other side. God is at the top of the triangle. As we grow closer to each other moving up the triangle, we grow closer to God at the top. As we grow older, we become more in tune with each other and with what God wants for us. My Soul Mate, my love! God knew we would be a perfect fit!
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