The LBDDiaries.com Blog

This is one of my most favorite songs – and I’ve never even seen the movie Casablanca.  What most people don’t know is that the song was not written to start with “You must remember this” – there were actually three verses prior and “you must remember this” was part of the chorus. 

So when Ilsa told Sam to “Play it, Sam, play ‘As Time Goes By’”, the song sung by Dooley Wilson in Casablanca (and here) didn’t include those verses in the movie.  Probably time constraints.  It’s a shame, really, because it explained so much about the song.

This day and age we’re living in
Gives cause for apprehension
With speed and new invention
And things like fourth dimension.

Yet we get a trifle weary
With Mr. Einstein’s theory.
So we must get down to earth at times
Relax, relieve the tension

And no matter what the progress
Or what may yet be proved
The simple facts of life are such
They cannot be removed.

Even though this was written in 1931, those verses still fit today.  It really does still boil down to “the simple facts of life”… that they really “are such (that) they cannot be removed.”  Love and lovers.  Some things never change over time; they are fundamental.

You must remember this
A kiss is still a kiss
A sigh is just a sigh
The fundamental things apply
As time goes by

It is those couples who retain those fundamentals, who remember what is important and what fundamentals really apply as time goes by, who will remain lovers their entire lives.  We really need those kisses.  We really need those *sighs* caught in between two lovers as they touch, ache, love.  We really need romance, passion, and the feelings that go along with the committment.  Without the fundamentals, love can wither.  Without love, there is nothing.

Kissing, sighing, loving are fundamental to an intimate relationship.  Romance is a fundamental.  Touch is fundamental.  The things of life are there (children, bills, jobs, friends, other family), but they should never interfere or interrupt those fundamentals of life between lovers.

And when two lovers woo
They still say I love you
On that you can rely
No matter what the future brings
As time goes by

It is necessary to woo and keep wooing.  I love that word “woo”.  The original meaning was “to court a woman.”  Better is “To seek the affection of with intent to romance” which goes both ways.  Best are the synonyms – “to court, pursue, chase.”  Woo, court, pursue, chase – fundamentals to any relationship!

When a couple first meet, they woo, they court, they pursue, they chase.  A dance that leads to intimacy, to becoming a couple.  Now here is another fundamental:  KEEP IT UP.  My mom once said to me, “Just because you marry doesn’t mean to stop doing what it was that caught the attention in the first place.”

That is a fundamental I find myself working on all the time – keeping up the earlier fundamentals.  I have areas I haven’t done well in but he still woos me.  I need to be woo-worthy!  To be that woman he first married, only better now.

Moonlight and love songs
Never out of date
Hearts full of passion
Jealousy and hate
Woman needs man
And man must have his mate
That, no one can deny

Although we work to keep jealousy and hate out of our life space, Alpha Hubby is everything to me.  I do need him (of course, he must have me to live!).   He saved me.  He helped me heal.  He gave me the sweetest dreams to replace the nightmares.   He pushed and prodded me into being confident enough to re-seek my best me.  Could I have found myself without him?  Sure.  But he made the journey shorter and sweeter, and gave me the one thing I’d never had before – a backup, support, a foundation to lean on, and the power of BELIEF.

It’s still the same old story
A fight for love and glory
A case of do or die
The world will always welcome lovers
As time goes by

He believes in me.  He is fierce about it.  He had to be (and occasionally still has to) in order to convince me.  His belief is what gave me the ability to put the past behind me once and for all, and to seek to be a stronger, whole me.   To pursue my dreams whole-heartedly. 

There is power in knowing someone is there to catch me, prop me up then PUSH me back out there to go at it again.   To be surrounded in complete acceptance is a heady experience.  He has given me THE fairy tale.  He helped me kill the wicked witch then gave me the weapons to go stomp out those imps who would cause me to doubt myself.

A fairy tale ending.  We really did ride off into the sunset toward a better life together.  We live it.  Why?  Because we do not forget those fundamentals… as time goes by.

Oh man, I need to lighten up!

I kissed a frog.  And I liked it.

Heh heh heh.

So the other day I was minding my own business, folding towels and assorted things.  Suddenly I found a shirt that was stuck to one of the towels and pulled it off.

I thought it was Alpha Hubby’s gym shirt.  I then realized it was my shirt and it was a shirt that wasn’t supposed to go through the dryer.

“Well, crud,” I mumble.

“What?” asked AH from the other room.

“I just found a shirt that wasn’t supposed to go thru the dryer,” I reply.

“Well, what is it doing in the dryer then,” he asks, starting the male trek toward death.

“I must not have seen it when I put the clothes in the washer,” I reply.

“Well, if you had been more careful, it wouldn’t be in the dryer,” he tosses out, edging closer to death with each word.

I’m thinking, “What is the matter with this guy that he doesn’t value his life?”

He smirkingly continues, “I’m only trying to help.”

“I don’t need your help here.  There is no fixing this.  The shirt is shrunk,” stating the obvious.

“Bet you’ll be more careful next time, huh,” he says, laughing as he saunters down the hallway toward the bedroom.

*cricket cricket*

“You know,” I shout, “you’ll have to fall asleep sometime.”

*Snicker snicker*   “Yea right, babe, shaking in my boots here.”

“Grrrrrrrrr,”  a typical ending to most conversations a woman has married to an Alpha Male.

Because of Valentine’s Day, I got to thinking about the power of True Love.  It really isn’t magic but when you see it, it looks and feels like magic.  My parents were a perfect example of True Love.

Ordinary, no – really don’t think so
Not a love this true
Common destiny – we were meant to be
Me and you

They didn’t marry until 12 years after high school, but my mom says she fell in love with him the minute she saw him.  Dad used to joke that he ran for 12 years and finally gave up – but he would say it with a special secret smile they gave one another when he said that.  The pix below are years apart (hers in 1944; his in 1966).

They were romantic, often breaking out in dance when my brother and I were growing up.  I loved watching my dad’s face when they were slow dancing.  There was never a doubt in my mind they were a romantic, madly in love couple even after 55 years of marriage.  I thought all parents were like my parents.

Like a perfect scene – from a movie screen
We’re a dream come true
Suited perfectly – for eternity
Me and you

After both my parents died, I was going through their effects and discovered each had saved romantic cards they’d received from each other over the years.  What surprised me is that the best ones (and most) were given later in their marriage.  Their love truly did get better and stronger as time went by, as evidenced by the little notes they hand-wrote in the card.  I felt I was a peeping tom looking at something intimate.

Contrary to all the negativity out there in the world, many couples are forever couples (like my friends Pamela and Eric) and work very hard to keep the romance and intimacy protected in their relationships.  They learned the secret that while it takes work to protect that intimacy, it is well worth it. 

Some people even get married right out of high school (like my friend Steph and her hubby Mike) and years later, are still madly in love and creating a wonderful life together.

Or like my son and his wife LeighAnn – after 5 years, they were married in 2010 in Vegas by Elvis thankyouverymuch.  They have so much fun together.  They play.  They laugh.  They fit like a hand and glove!

Alpha Hubby and I made a solemn promise to one another right after we married.  We promised not to become roommates.  We promised to keep the honeymoon going.  We promised that we would not allow what we had to fade and become stale.

Sometimes we have to slap our own faces and remind ourselves to put the other first, to keep that intimacy going, but it truly does just keep getting better and better. 

Everyday I live – try my best to give
All I have to you
Thank the stars above – that we share this love
Me and you

Alpha Hubby is incredibly adept at romantic gestures.  He wants to stop and dance.  He loves dancing with me.  He is always giving of himself for and to me.  He has learned a language of love that blesses me to hear.  Even after almost 18 years of marriage, he is able to take my breath away by how he feels and what he says.

He truly loves me and everything he does is for me and for us. 

The power of True Love is not just romantic gestures like sending flowers.  It is constantly letting one another know “you are so loved.”  It is believing in one another.  It is getting caught bragging about each other.  It is speaking words of life, positive words, over one another rather than pointing out each other’s faults.  It is in seeing that person as valuable and precious to you.  It is in keeping promises.  It is in not taking each other for granted.  True Love is far too rare to waste.

Ordinary, no – really don’t think so
Just a precious few – ever make it last
Get as lucky as
Me and you

Life is about True Tove.  It means you put your love for one another first, putting yourselves ahead of everything else.  Then you arrange that everything else around that precious love.  Then that everything else will work out from that point.  Never put anything else first ahead of each other – not children, not careers, not hobbies, not others.  The only thing more important than your love for one another is your love for God. 

You must nurture True Love.  Learn that rule.  Then go forth and Enjoy It.  Enjoy it more than just on Valentine’s Day!!

Baby, a few white hairs later (altho why yours is in your beard and mine is all over my head…), a lot of laughs, fun, joy, happiness, and True Love:

Every day I need you even more
And the nighttime too
There’s no way I could ever let you go
Even if I wanted to

And trust me, I don’t.  Ever.

.
Others to check out:

http://www.nancygrayce.blogspot.com
http://www.highheeledlife.com
http://www.myinnerchick.com
http://www.bluecottonmemory.wordpress.com/
 http://www.thekeepingtime.blogspot.com/
http://www.wildchildmama.com 
http://www.cinfulcinnamon.com
http://www.classicnycstory.com
http://www.stardustsavannah.com
http://www.winsomebella.wordpress.com
http://www.gypsyroxylee.wordpress.com/
http://www.amysadventures.org
http://www.momentsofwhimsy.com

It’s kind of funny to feel like a very romantic couple, to post little tidbits of romance like you know what you’re talking about, to be held up as a standard by some, to be told “you guys help me know what real love is” – and then to have nothing to say during the “romance month” and Valentine’s Day!  It’s like (*horrors*) – I have no romance left in me!

Say it ain’t so, Joe!!

OK, it ain’t so.  I just can’t seem to find any words right now!  Well, there is a word – a cool word – a word they used to use in historical romances all the time to describe the hero.  Ennui (ahn-wee):

A feeling of utter weariness and discontent resulting from satiety

The kind of ennui that comes from having too much time on one’s
hands and too little will to find something productive to do

Synonyms: blahs, doldrums, boredom, listlessness, restlessness,
tedium, weariness

Oh no, I am not talking about my feelings for Alpha Hubby.  I am talking about trying to find things “romantic”.  Things romance-related.  To find something DIFFERENT  that is romantic.  You know, like all the magazines suggest, “Keep your sex life and the romance kindled and hot-hot-hot!”  Blah.

Those people don’t live in the boonies.  Living in the boonies means you can’t dress up and go to the opera.  You can’t take a carriage ride.  You can’t even find an up-scale restaurant right around the corner…

 …(you know, the kind with linen tablecloths and CLOTH napkins, real silver, candles, and waiters that DO NOT introduce themselves to you with a, “Hello, my name is Bubba and I’ll be your waiter tonight and since I’m working my way through college and really need the money I am going to interrupt you many, many times tonight to make sure you are satisfied and will leave a good tip.”). 

You get the picture.  We have no place to go unless we want to drive over an hour plus to get there… which sort of stifles the romance when you also have to drive back home late at night without a limo and chauffeur so you can mess around in the back seat.  The lack of choices produces an unbearable ennui sometimes.  It is so exhausting to search for different ways to be romantic.  It means you have to THINK. 

It is so bad that I asked Alpha Hubby last Saturday night, “What are we going to do for Valentine’s Day?” 

He says, “I don’t know.  It’s on a Tuesday which makes it kind of hard to do anything.  What do you have in mind?”

I say, ‘Nothing. I’m not sure I want to do anything.  I mean, I don’t want to waste any money right now because I want that master suite addition done more than anything.  I don’t want us to spend money on each other.”

He says, “Yeah, I know what you mean.  It would be nice to have that finished.”

Then I began thinking, “Oh my gosh is the romance dead here?  Have we finally lost the honeymoon period after 18 years?  Are we doooomed?”

He adds, “We could go to Rivertown BBQ if you want.  So-in-so at work said it was the best.  I would be glad to take you if you want to go.”

I reply, “I’ve been there.  It’s okay but it is just a joint not a romantic restaurant or anything.  I think I remember the BBQ being very good, though.”

He says, “Well, it’s just a thought.  I would be glad to take you anywhere you want to go.”

I say, “I can pick some BBQ up and bring it home so we can eat here, on our beautiful table (that he made me), with candles and such.”  (Altho truth tell I am thinking, “BBQ is not romance food.”

He says, “No, that’s work on you and not romantic.”

Silence ensures.

I say, “Well, fine then.  Then we’ll do the usual.  Just come home and we’ll share a glass, romantic music, candles, and have wild, hot sex.”

He says, “Works for me.”

And they say romance is dead!

. 

When I found you I was blessed
And I will never leave you, I need you

Chorus:
Imagine me without you
I’d be lost and so confused
I wouldn’t last a day, I’d be afraid
Without you there to see me through

Imagine me without you
Lord, you know it’s just impossible
Because of you, it’s all brand new
My life is now worthwhile
I can’t imagine me without you

(Pardon my redux, slightly updated.  I pulled out [and revamped] a post from 2010.)

Okay. I know I chat a bit about Alpha Hubby.  Oh, OK, I chat a LOT.  And yes, in case you haven’t noticed, I am absolutely one hundred percent head-over-heels, over-the-moon wild about him.   There’s a reason.

Let me digress a bit.  Long before I met Alpha Hubby, loooooong before (what took you so long to find me, baby??), I’d done some studying, learning, changing, realizing what was important, what wasn’t, observing, growing, and growing up. 

I also did a lot of listening.  I used to listen to the women at work talk about their husbands.  I used to listen to women at Ladies Group (Bible study) talk about their hubands.  I used to listen to friends, store clerks, and near strangers talk about their husbands.

And when I say that what these women were not saying, “Oh, he is THE best man ev-ah!!”, I’m probably understating it.  I’d listen to women put their husbands down, talk about his faults, what irritates them about him, how he messed up (like they are so perfeft), everything he does wrong, and personal details that should never have been shared in public.  It was a total lack of respect and honor. 

I swore to myself that if I ever met a Knight In Shining Armor, I would make sure a day doesn’t go by that he doesn’t know I love him.  I would protect what we have together.  I would cherish him (even in the face of dirty laundry).  I would honor him.  I would respect  him.  I would never expose him to public scrutiny in a negative way.  No gossip, no “sharing” and, for sure, no bad-mouthing.  Ev-ah.  I made up my mind to do long this before I met him.

When you consider how long I waited for this KISA (12 years), I was certainly not going to waste any part of our life together.  Oh my gosh, I’d had enough drama in my life before I met him that I swore I would NEVER EVER live like that again.  And along comes this man who loves me!  He loves me!  He’s not afraid to show it.  I love him.  I’m not afraid to show it.  I like gagging people.  I love how he loves me!  And I absolutely refuse to allow one day to go by where he does not know how much I treasure his love.  I thank God for him.

We’ve been married 17 years, 9 months, 4 weeks today.  I only grow to love him more as each year passes.  He is my best friend and support.  He believes in me.  He is the first and only man to send me flowers.  He gives me everything I need.  And if it is within his power, he gives me everything I want and desire. 

Of course, I, in turn, do not want and desire things.  I want and desire him.  He is crazy about me!  And I can honestly say to you that not one time in 17 years, 9 months, 4 weeks have I ever bad-mouthed him to another person on this earth.  Ever.  Oh, I might have talked to myself but…

We work very hard to protect our marriage.  We do not speak badly about one another to others.  We hash out everything and even tho I’m sure he wants to pinch my head off sometimes, in 17 years, 9 months, 4 weeks, I think we only went to bed mad at one another one time – sometime 16 years ago.  It was no fun.  We didn’t like it.  We decided not to do that again.

He is strong, a man of honor and unwavering in what is right and what is wrong.  He is a man of God and is beyond my wildest dreams.  He’s got my back at all times.  AND he even does the dishes and sometimes clears out the dryer, folding the clothes AND not just because he’s on the hunt for socks.  AND He vacuums.  I know!!

I am his biggest cheerleader and he is mine.  I believe in him totally.  I believe in his dreams.  And sure, there are times we holler – well, I do.  He sulls up.  We learned that we don’t like that, either.  We decided not to do that again, either.  We work to keep the poison out of our marriage.  We don’t spend time alone with the opposite sex, or have intimate conversations with them about anything. 

Today I decided that I wanted to do a tribute to Alpha Hubby.  I wanted to publicly thank him for loving me like he does.  He makes my world a better place with his powerful love.

I want to thank him for working hard to support this family and allowing me the freedom to be home to write and pursue my dreams.  I want to thank him for getting up every morning 5 to 6 days a week to go to that job.  I want to thank him for the work he does in our home, creating dream rooms for me.  I want to thank him for the passion we have together (BOY! Do I want to thank him for THAT!).  I want to thank him for the unconditional support he has given me while I am on this journey to get back into my Little Black Dress.  UN-CONDITIONAL.  His heart burns for ME (and it’s not indigestion).

I’m so glad I tangled up my life and dreams with his! 

Baby, I love how you love me.  You do an excellent job!

There are a lot of blogs aimed at or written by younger mothers who blog about their children.  I think that is wonderful.**

But this isn’t one of them.  I’m from the other side.  The dark side.

I am here to tell you something.  Shhhh. It is a very well kept secret.

There are definite benefits to having your children moved out of the house.  OK, there are major benefits to having your children moved out of the house.

You have reached a different stage of enjoyment with your kids. You are blessed to be able to see “who” they have become.  Alpha Hubby and I love  that our son is also one of our best friends (along with his wife and their friends).

Be that as it may, after he moved out (and my short heart-aching meltdown), it didn’t take long to realize the benefits.  I looked over at Alpha Hubby and we shared a very sly grin together.  Helloooo, baby!

I was blessed to have a mother who warned me to take care of business so that when Alpha Son was out, Alpha Hubby and I would still know each other. She warned to protect our relationship so we didn’t look at one another after 17 years and think, “WHO is this person?”

The best years ever as a couple are those after you have finished the years of raising children.  I know each stage of your child is wonderful and you never stop loving and praying for them.  But you let them go to spread their wings to fly or hit a wall, their choice. You are there IF they need you but your focus has changed.  No.  That’s not true.  My focus has always been on Alpha Hubby, but I was also mom.  It isn’t the same during as it is afterward.  “Mommy, why is the door locked?”  No, it never happened but it could easily have!

You can now get back to the business of chasing one another around the house.

Alpha Hubby and I didn’t get that when we married. He took on the responsibility of Alpha Son and I believe Alpha Son would not be who he is today were it not for Alpha Hubby. He is the one who completed the manly-man training.  I mean, I have to blame someone for this:

So anyway, my point is that there is more of this under the tree and less little metal cars:

We will sit in front of this on Christmas eve and share what we love about one another:

There will be this:

And some of this:

And lots of this:

And…

…well, needless to say, that simply is NONE of your business!

No matter what stage you are in your life, ENJOY it.

Oh, and the title?  Well, it caught your attention didn’t it???  HO HO HO!!

Santa Baby, slip a sable under the tree – for me
Been an awful good girl
Santa Baby, so hurry down the chimney tonight -0 de dum de dum dum da dum….

**Not to imply that mothers who blog about their children can’t do these things, too.  I know they do, thru experience.  I’m talking about once the kids have moved out of the house and you’re free to run wild without embarrassing interruptions.

(Look Babe! Your Worst Nightmare)

How do I describe Christmas at our house?  It is not the normal peaceful candle-lit home with Christmas music wafting out of speakers high up near the ceiling.   Not the normal simmering potpourri on the stovetop.  No children nestled all snug in their beds ’cause they are at their own house, doing their own thing.  Except for fixing the food.  Then they pack their lazy booties into their car and travel to momma’s house and…. *Ahem*  Please excuse the digression.  Allow me continue.

Not the normal stockings except one pretty, sparkly “DIVA” one and all I want is chocolate in it, filled to the brim.  But no chocolate if the fire is crackling in the fireplace.  And if there are any more creatures stirring, I don’t wanna know about it.  They should all be gone or terminated by now.  ZAP and Merry Christmas to you, you little buggers.  BLAH Hum-mouse.

NO sugar plums since we don’t eat sugar like that.  And if I did eat sugar plums and they were dancing in my head, I’d seriously be wondering what I’d been drinking.  Any clattering on our lawn would mean the cows got out and are making a run for it, so no.  It is not what some would call the norm for Christmas at our house.

Nope.  At our house we have CHRISTMAS MAYHEM.  Murder most foul.  Slaughter and chaos.  Threats of brutality and violence.  Total and one hundred percent WAR.  Each and every year.  WAR! Hunh! good God, ya’all… what is it good for?  Absolutely somethang… if I win!*

You ask “Why? Why at this most sacred of holidays are you at war?”  Well, I’ll tell you why.  It is so sad and it is over something so innocent, so pure, so fragile that I am sure you will be as horrified as I am by the evil perpetrated against these sweet things (on some, click on pix to see larger image, then hit the BACK arrow):

 THIS above is how I know God is into snowmen
Praising & Praying Snowmen

We don’t have peace on earth because of HIM.  I mean, gee – this is only a few of my snowmen.  And I don’t know why I feed his rage.  I guess there is just something inside me that is a wee bit… shall we say warped?  Sort of like poking a stick at a big old bear!  Heh heh heh.  I would say I’m sorry but I can’t.  It wouldn’t be true.

I’m not even half as bad as I used to be.  Last year I gave away at least half my stock to a women’s shelter.  Does that stop his whining and threats of violence?  Nay!  He dreams of hanging them by their little scarves then letting me walk in and find them.  He wants to take a blowtorch to them.  I’ve even heard rumors of chain saws and snow shovels.

I say that it is just WRONG.  What did a snowman EVER do to him?  Is it that he could never build THE perfect one when he was a child?  Did his sisters keep knocking his snowman over?  Did one fall on him?  Or poke its carrot nose where it didn’t belong?  WHAT?  WHAT would cause such animosity in this otherwise nice decent guy?

We may never know.  And the war continues even though I’ve been really good.  I promised I’d only buy new ones if they were unique, hard to find or irreplaceable.  In other words, I am not allowed to go to K-M*rt and raid the Christmas aisle.

But… YOU can!!  Yes, Virginia, there is a solution.  If you want to join me in driving Alpha Hubby Christmas Nuts, you can mail me an unusual snowman.  Wouldn’t that be the best way to spread Christmas cheer?  Bwahahahaha!!! 

Oh OK, just kidding.  Really, hon!  Don’t read any further, OK???  (To everyone else, if you send me an email or say in the comment, I’ll let you know my address… hee hee).

I’ll leave you with a little link that is Jake singing (there is an Elwood but I don’t have his pix yet; these reference the movie The Blues Brothers).  He’s singing “I’m A Snow Man” just for you – sung to the tune, “I’m A Soul Man.”  These are my fave two snowmen – and Alpha Hubby even enjoys listening to them (so he’s not all bad – Alpha Hubby, not Jake).

http://www.plushzone.com/sounds/snowman.mp3

(It requires Quicktime so you may not be able to hear it)

p.s.  Lest you think my Alpha Hubby is totally evil, he purchased the two snowmen sitting in the middle of the first snowmen picture when he was in PA on business.  He REALLY loves me, beyond snowmen.  That’s a lot.

*Reference to the song WAR by Edwin Starr (or those of you who saw RUSH with Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker)
.

(Quotes from The Princess Bride movie, official site)

Westley:  Hear this now: I will always come for you.
Buttercup:  But how can you be sure?
Westley:  This is true love – you think this happens every day?

Westley:  I told you I would always come for you. Why didn’t you wait for me?
Buttercup:  Well… you were dead.
Westley:  Death cannot stop true love. All it can do is delay it for a while.
Buttercup: I will never doubt again.
Westley: There will never be a need.

So I am sure you’re thinking, “Huh?  Am I in church today or something?”  No, no.  Just sharing a scripture because one day I dug out some other translations of that chapter and discovered that these verses truly express the love Alpha Hubby has for me.  His love never fails me. 

Just like the quote above from The Princess Bride – a wonderfully warm, funny, touching movie with twist on a classic fairy tale of true love — true love just doesn’t happen every day. 

Alpha Hubby has shown me what unconditional love is.  I never dreamed I would experience it in my lifetime.  He shows me true love – the kind that doesn’t happen every day – the kind death cannot stop.  His love manifests like this:

He is patient.
He is kind
He is not envious
He does not have a high opinion of himself, especially over me
He is not arrogant
He is always fair – if he is wrong, he admits it
He doesn’t EVER put himself first or only think of himself
He doesn’t insist on his own way all the time
He is absolutely not quick to anger – and if he gets angry, he is also very quick to forgive
He is never resentful
He doesn’t keep a record of wrongs done to him
He is always supportive, loyal, faithful, and trusting
He never gives up on me
He always believe the best in and of me

How can I not love this man?  Love is… “the arms that are holding you” - his love never fails me.

Baby, thank you for asking me to marry you when you didn’t even realize you were going to.  I’ve never regreted one day.  Not for even a moment.  

I never knew.  Now I do.  And I’m so grateful I waited for the best.

.

Lyrics – Love Never Fails, sung by Brandon Heath:

Love is not proud
Love does not boast
Love after all
Matters the most

Love does not run
Love does not hide
Love does not keep
Locked inside

Love is the river that flows through
Love never fails you

Love will sustain
Love will provide
Love will not cease
At the end of time

Love will protect
Love always hopes
Love still believes
When you don’t

Love is the arms that are holding you
Love never fails you

When my heart won’t make a sound
When I can’t turn back around
When the sky is falling down
Nothing is greater than this
Greater than this

Love is right here
Love is alive
Love is the way,
The truth, the life

Love is the river that flows through
Love is the arms that are holding you
Love is the place you will fly to
Love never fails you