Three years, I married my best friend and my soul mate. We have been together for almost 13 years now – WOW! It was a beautiful day surrounded by family and close friends. It started off a little shaky with some traffic in the area getting the Pastor there in just enough time. Traffic caused my mom to be late so she was stressing herself out. Belinda was the picture of calm as the Maid of Honor. I have to admit, I was a tad nervous. Dad said that I was shaking as I walked down the short aisle of the hall. Rob thought I was going to pass out. Who would have thought that I would be this nervous on my wedding day???
Rob and I had what some may call a “unique” love story. Bear with me for just a moment if you have already heard this…We dated in high school, well, the summer before HS. We were at different schools – he was from Neptune and I was from Ocean Township. A strange mix but we were happy until school started. I made new friends, joined clubs and found what I thought was a “new interest”. So, I ended our summer romance.
Fast forward 30 years.. Rob is driving in the Monmouth/Ocean County area and sees a roadside tribute that says “HOPE”. He wanted to make sure that it wasn’t me. Really??? Well, he spent about a year hunting me down. I didn’t think it was that hard but apparently it was even with the advent of computer searches. I got a note in the mail with an email address. Being a little skeptical, I sent an email and as they say – the rest is history. We spent about 4 months emailing back and forth. On October 13, 2001, Rob decided to drive to Atlantic County to visit me at a craft show. I didn’t want a relationship. He had been divorced for a few years and wasn’t really looking either. I mean, Belinda and I were happy with our lives. I am not sure when but we realized that God had brought us together for a reason…. to be a family. Belinda was not exactly thrilled in the beginning and I have to say looking back, there were times when she just wasn’t nice.
When Rob and I decided to build our life together, we made the decision to wait until Belinda was out of high school before we moved in together. Then for a variety of reasons, we decided to wait until she was close to graduating college before we would get married…. hence the date of May 2011.
The last three years have been filled with tears of happiness and sadness. We have learned the meaning of “in sickness and in health”. We have learned the art of compromise – not always easy for this former independent woman. There is nothing that I would different and if Rob asked me again, I would marry him in a heartbeat.
Happy Anniversary honey! Thank you for being there for me through the good times and the bad. Thank you for loving me when I didn’t love myself. Thank you for being my solid rock when I am ready to roll down the cliff. Thank you for being my cheerleader when I think I can’t go on any longer. I love you more than words can say and I can’t imagine what my life would be like with out.
Have a ThirtyOne-derful day!
Hope Wissel 
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