Love, Sweet Love

Twenty-two years ago, I walked into Old Main at Western Washington University for a job interview. Bill offered me a job as a teacher’s assistant that day, and I enrolled in the class he required (and taught) for assistants in his program. I quickly became enamored with what a brilliant language teacher he was and learned more about leadership and educating others from Bill than anyone else–before or since. We worked together on and off until I moved out of Bellingham in 1999… but we weren’t in love.

Then ten years ago, during a very difficult time in my life, I phoned my old teacher, supervisor, and friend, Bill, to ask for a reference for a new job I was applying for. It was a life-changing phone call. We caught up over dinner at a Thai restaurant in Mt. Vernon, and in the new iteration of our relationship, we did fall in love. This week we celebrated 7 years of marriage!

Thank you to the love of my life for sharing dreams, adventure, and strength with me. And thanks for our annual whale-watching anniversary trip. It’s a tradition I cherish.