As a teenager, I was a pretty boy-crazy girl. I had a lot of crushes, and was always thinking about meeting “the one”. There were a few boys that I liked at church (and basically all my friends liked too), and we spent most of our time talking about them, trying to be noticed by them… basically a typical teenage girl. When I was sixteen, I was part of a committee to organize a youth conference for our stake (a group of local congregations) along with a bunch of other youth from our stake. I remember those meetings pretty well, and the friends that I made there, but four years ago, I found out that there was someone else there that I didn’t notice — Christopher. Going back to my boy-crazy attitude, the reason I didn’t notice that Christopher was there was that I was way more interested in the other boys.
In the next few years, I talked to Chris a few times, as we had mutual friends, but we never really formed a connection. In fact, I pictures from Canada Day festivities when I was 18, and he was in the background of them. When we were 19, Chris went to Texas to serve a mission for our church. I was dating someone else at the time, and once again didn’t really notice him, though I was aware that he existed.
Two years later, Christopher came home. I was still dating the same guy as before, but he was now on his mission in California. I remember the first time I saw Chris after he got home. He was at the back of the chapel at church, and I remember thinking, “Chris Craig is home”. From that moment on, even though my heart was still with my missionary, I liked talking with Chris. As the months went on, I found myself making excuses to talk to him (and about him), and enjoyed his company.
Just before I turned 22, in June of 2011, I moved out of my parents house to live with some of my girl friends. Chris, being the sweet guy that he was (and is), helped me move. I only moved a block or two away, so it wasn’t too bad. We went to a movie (X-Men: First Class) with some friends the night that we moved everything in. I remember still being unsure of how I felt about Chris, and wondering the whole movie if he would try to hold my hand (and secretly hoping that he would). The next two weeks, we spent basically every day together binge watching The Big Bang Theory (back when it was still good). The more time we spent together, the more I realized that I really liked him and wanted to see how things would go if we started to date. On my 22nd birthday, I officially ended things with my missionary (yep, I’m the girl who “Dear Johned” a guy three months before he came home…). Within a month of dating, I knew that I would probably marry Chris, and a few months later, I knew for sure. I will never forget the moment that I knew I would spend the rest of my life with him. It still makes my eyes water today.
I found this quote the other day, and I feel like it sums us up perfectly: “I’ve lost people and found them again. The second time around, things just made more sense. Honestly, timing has a lot to do with everything. Sometimes you aren’t ready for each other yet.”
Thinking about our life together these last four years, and the three years that we have been married, I have realized that timing is everything. Sometimes I wonder what life would have been like if I had noticed Chris in those meetings, or had an inclination that we would end up together when we danced one time when we were 17. But the more I think about the more I realize that we needed that time on our own to become who we be when we got together. While we may have met when we were 16, we weren’t ready for each other yet, but six years later, we were. Timing really is everything. It makes all the difference.
Photo credit: David Dudley Photography
ps. When being in love is all you have in common, thoughts on three years of marriage and what 26 looks like.
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