Happy Birthday Sweetheart!

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It was my dearest friend's birthday this week - my wife Lisa was born 37 years ago to a family of seven girls.  Though I know it was a terrible surprise to her mother at the time, as most of her sisters were born in the 50's, she blessed their lives throughout her childhood and teenage years beyond imagination, and has filled my life with bliss for nearly 14 years.  Although it was understandably a different experience for her, it was not only love at first sight for me, it was utter amazement that such a creature existed!  I had no idea that good fortune would smile upon me enough to get a date with the darling woman, but the unbreakable spell that inspired every ounce of courage, creativity, and hope wasn't cast until she sang for me.  It was our first date, and part of the date requirement.  My good friend Earl Gage, who was in the first Vocal Point group at BYU, and I sang to our dates, and then we said "It's your turn".  She didn't hesitate for even a fraction of a moment!  She hopped up on the fountain in the Tanner Building and broke into song.  Although she was far from interested in me at the time, she still looked me in the eyes while she sang.  I fell so deeply into that spell that I will never recover from it's effects, neither do I want to. 

Yesterday she gave me some vocal lessons, as we were singing a rather difficult piece (for me) at a church function, and I hadn't seen the piece before that day.  She was patient, persistent, and to my surprise, successful!  At least considering the amount of time invested in the voice lesson, she had me sounding SO much better that I ran over to the bookshelf and pulled out Les Miserables.  I felt like Marius!  I know I didn't sound like HIM, but it was reMARKably more Marius sounding than I had ever sounded.  A pity it didn't last until the church function, but there was a new hope.  

On Friday night she sang, upon my volunteering her in a way not unsimilar to our first date, for our entire company team and their spouses.  She sang like a lark in front of more than 60 of our employees and their spouses.  She sang 'What Child is This?' acapella in such a sweet tones that it's been requested that she do that every year as part of the practice Christmas party tradition.  

And so you know that from the beginning, when I first learned that her voice is intoxicating, until just yesterday night, music has played an important part of our relationship.  And even if she were to lose her voice and her beautiful looks, and even her ability to walk and talk, she would still have me wrapped around her finger forever.  This life is too short to not fully appreciate how I've been so blessed by God through one individual.  It's all Lisa.  I'd do it again a million times.  She hears from me at least once a week the phrase that I can't stop saying: "Thank you for marrying me!"  It's just that it all turned out SO much better than I expected.  

Happy Birthday Lisa!  (And I was only getting started)  

I love you more than my life - or better said, you ARE my life!