14 Years

Tuesday, 24 August 2010

Well, as of today I’ve been a married man for 14 years. To the same woman, too. Yep, it’s hard to believe that it’s been 14 years since I first stood through a boring, long ceremony, then carried my bride out of the building and into a waiting limo.

I had this idea that I was going to write a haiku for each of the 14 years Jennifer and I have been married, but, wow, it’s hard to come up with the correct number of syllables each time. So, instead, here are my original sketches for said haikus. Admittedly, this isn’t very poetic, but perhaps there’s some fun in reducing an entire year of wedlock down to a few sentences…?

Year 1 (1996-1997)

Our first home, filled our time with parakeets, a cockatiel, and pioneering. A bad letter from Wheelock made us write to and receive a bad letter from the Watchtower.

Year 2 (1997-1998)

Failed at pioneering, succeeded at watching plenty of Star Trek. I worked full-time schmoozing with customers, you cleaned hotels. More birds.

Year 3 (1998-1999)

More money ever than before, lots of nice new things, finally a vacation. Goodbye Cosmo.

Year 4 (1999-2000)

We stayed up and watch the millennium end. I went to college, you worked at Mackin.

Year 5 (2000-2001)

A lot of time, money and energy on Kara’s wedding helped us reunite with the Kimballs. I left the retail world and we became home-owners. Hooray Prince Edward Island!

Year 6 (2001-2002)

Another new in-law, all kinds of friends. I graduated from Century, you had presents waiting when I came home. A  website, and lots of videos.

Year 7 (2002-2003)

At long last, a job I love. You went part-time. Oliver and Emmaline, our home all fixed up, a couple of great vacations. Life was never so great.

Year 8 (2003-2004)

It started off good: fun with friends and family. But I didn’t like my job, the commute was horrendous. Ryan left and we fretted it was our fault, a pedophile was welcomed back into the congregation. We wrote another letter, then defected. Big Lake. Big mistake.

Year 9 (2004-2005)

Hello, Owen! Finally, we are parents. Yes, that was good. But trauma. And depression. And colic. Isolation and sadness. Goodbye Rhett.

Year 10 (2005-2006)

More of the same. We work, eat, sleep, cry. And try to get our baby to stop crying. At least we woke up. But it scared me. We won’t tell anyone for now. Let’s enjoy our ten-year anniversary with the friends who will abandon us once we tell them we’ve solved our problems.

Year 11 (2006-2007)

No friends, new friends, renewed friends. Happy birthday to all of us! A speech therapist for Owen and a sweet library for us.

Year 12 (2007-2008)

A Christmas tree, Solace and Survey and Atheists. Goodbye Big Lake…let’s go where we were supposed to go in the first place.

Year 13 (2008-2009)

Voting for us, a preschool for Owen. More time volunteering, exercising and bicycling. Goodbye Oliver.

Year 14 (2009-2010)

Hamline while working full-time, St. Kate’s while pregnant. Lots of homework. Hello, Isla!