I know I brag about Dallas an awful lot. I just can’t help that. He is really that amazing.
(Mushy post ahead.)
Thank goodness for technology. We’ve been able to talk on Facebook Chat almost every day since he’s been gone, because he’s either had a wired internet connection or he’s had access to a wireless network. We also talk on Skype once or twice a week. As of yesterday, he’s in areas where he’s only six hours ahead of us, instead of seven. It’s funny how that extra hour we’re both awake every day already makes a huge difference. We’ve been able to talk a little longer these last couple of days than we’ve been able to for the last month. Tonight, he was getting ready to go to bed, and he said the sweetest thing: “I miss you so very much and I want to love and keep you forever and never leave your side when I get home.” Did it make me cry? Yeah, a little…in a good way, I promise.
It’s things like this afternoon that make me think a lot about how lucky I am to have found my better half so early in our lives, how I didn’t realize it was possible to love and miss somebody as much as I love and miss Dallas, how–even though we’re thousands of miles apart–I love him more every day, just like I did when he was here by my side.
We’ve had our ups and downs like any other couple. There were a couple of times that I really thought we wouldn’t make it. We both had past demons to face, some more immediate than others; there were times in the first couple of months of our relationship that I wanted to throw my hands in the air and just walk away because it would be so much easier than watching him be frustrated over what he was trying to deal with, and dealing with the increasingly obvious effects of that situation on his mental health. In the end, I couldn’t let him try to work through it alone. He had to be patient with me as I relearned what it was like to love and to be loved without any fear–because there were times that I was suspicious of how nice and sweet he was, and I was always afraid there was going to be a catch. I’m so thankful that we worked together to get through those hard times and we walked away stronger than ever.
I love you, darling. Thanks for being the best thing that’s ever happened to me.
Mitten Bird 