When you're about to embark on a life milestone like a fortieth wedding anniversary, you should not be thinking about "what-ifs". But I doubt if we would be having this celebration if it weren't for Dean's accident sixteen years ago.

After years of separation, we seemed relatively happy going our separate ways with minimum contact in between. But when he suffered a massive brain trauma, our lives suddenly became blended again, and we became a whole new couple. I'm sure we indeed cast a unique image, giving marital bliss a definition all its own.

Our current life has had as many pitfalls as the prior one, but somehow we seem to be connected with a stronger adhesive this time, enabling us to dig ourselves out with much more grace and maturity. Besides love, our faith has grown exponentially, making this leg of our journey more bearable, happier, and worth celebrating.

So, we will definitely be kicking up our heels tomorrow in celebration. But probably not too high. And I'll have to hold onto my man pretty tight; he's such a fall risk. Daily hugs have kept us in practice though, so no worry there.