Growing up I was never one to fantasize about my dream wedding (though you should click and check it out!). But the marriage agenda was quickly added to the docket once I was attending youth group at a non-denominational church. Sandwiched between youth revival retreat weekends and camps were weekly lessons on the behaviors necessary to keep the opposite sex from “stumbling” — and why the Proverbs 31 woman was hashtag goals. Nonetheless, youth group did emphasize one thing:
The strongest relationships are built on the foundation of friendship.
That’s not to impose a timeline on any couple – some people wait years, while other jump feet first into next level commitment within weeks. Regardless of the pace, the key is fostering a best friendship before jumping into bed to be lovers. Establishing a foundation of loyalty, trust and fun ensure your relationship has the staying power to weather the dark days life brings to every couples' doorstep.
Our friendship took off fast, as we spent most of our waken free time together while working at a sleep away camp in the summer of 2007. It’s crazy to think its been 10 years. Our conversations held no bounds and for some reason, we were willing to be vulnerable so quickly. No one could make me feel so warm and at home in my own skin. No one made me laugh the way she did. It’s so clear in hindsight that my wife 
Desperate Last Ditch Effort
But as mentioned in my #introduceyourself post, our religious background made sustaining a friendship let alone relationship emotionally railing, and after one of our many break-ups Damaris made this video to win me back. It’s bittersweet but emotional in the best way to reflect back on our early beginnings. As painful as it is to watch my awkward adolescence, I'm glad we have this treasure because we didn't document much of our secret affair (no paper trails!). Sorry for the poor quality - its about eight-ish years old.
The song is “To Show You My Love” by Mike Shmid and it was one of the few standard options to choose from for the Animoto trial when my wife created the video haha. But a decade later, we couldn’t think of a better first dance song for our wedding, regardless of how obscurely known it was to our attendees. The ups and downs convinced me this day would never come. I ugly cried as she held and swayed me.
Looking back, these were some of the most robust years of our lives and relationship. We traveled care free with our only bill being our cell phones (thanks, parental units!), exploring places like Atlantic City, the seasides of Florida and the snowcapped mountains of Vermont. Some ventures took us across our borders to Mexico and Canada – all unknown to our friends and loved ones. We were young adults still playing the “tell your mom you’re sleeping over at my house tonight” game.
Still my only regret is not inviting others into our journey sooner.
Damaris and I are thrilled that Steemians like you have allowed us to confidently step toward transparency with the world, but we are sensitive to the fact that we are also sharing previously unknown elements of our relationship with our loved ones here on Steemit. We are grateful for the way each and every one of you have embraced our journey. I cannot say thank you enough.
Please feel free to share your love story, I'd love to hear it!
