All You Need is Love

I've gone so back and forth as to whether  to post his here. I kind of wrote it as something private and didn't intend to share it with anyone but Joe, but then on a whim I entered it into a contest on fb and I won.  I agreed to let it be shared there, so I figured why not here too?

It is our anniversary after all. So here goes. 

Once upon a time there was a blued eyed girl. She was lonely and sad, until one day she went to a New Year's Eve party and she met a handsome brown eyed boy. 

The blue eyed girl and the brown eyed boy fell in love and decided to get married.

 People told them they were too young (she was 22 and he was 24), and that it wouldn't last. 

They didn't listen.   They loved each other very much and they decided to marry anyway. They were married in a little clapboard church in the middle of a snow covered field. 

And they were happy. 

After about five or six years(they didn't want to rush), the blue eyed girl and the brown eyed boy decided they would like to grow their family. They threw away their birth control and were giddy with happiness at the thought of becoming parents. 

But parenthood did not come come easily for them. Years of trying led to nothing but loss and heartbreak.  Tests and painful surgeries, and lots of money(lots and lots of money) was spent in the quest for a baby to grow their family. 

Still no baby for them.  

The blue eyed girl would cry herself to sleep every night and the brown eyed boy would hold her and tell her everything would be alright, as long as they were together.  

After five  years of trying to get pregnant, the blue eyed girl's sister welcomed a beautiful little Chinese girl into their family.  It was love at first sight for the baby's aunt and uncle and it was decided on the spot that they would stop trying to get pregnant and that they too would adopt a baby with almond shaped eyes from a faraway country.  

They filled out a lot of paperwork(so much paperwork). They spent lots and lots more money. 

But finally, after a year of preparation the Chinese government sent word that they were approved to adopt a baby from china.  

The blue eyed girl and the brown eyed boy were so happy. They bought baby clothes.  They decorated a nursery.  They chose a name for their little girl and dreamed of her every night.  

Then they waited.  And waited.  And waited.  The wait for babies from china had lengthened.  One year passed, then two.  They still held hope in their hearts that their child was out there, waiting for them, as they were waiting for her.  

Two years turned into three years, then three into four.  

But still they waited.  

During that time the brown eyed boy lost his job as a teacher. No matter how hard he tried he was unable to find another job. 

They fell on hard times.  They lost their apartment.  They had to pack up their nursery and baby things and put everything into storage. They cried buckets of tears, but still held onto hope that things could change and they would one day get a call from china letting them know they had been matched with a baby. 

But after five and a half years of waiting, their circumstances had not changed financially and they did not meet the income requirements to adopt from china any longer. 

They were forced to pull their paperwork and give up on their dreams of having a baby, again.  

They had been trying to grow their family for 13 years and the blue eyed girl was weary.  

Once again she cried herself to sleep every night and the brown eyed boy held her and told her they would be ok, as long as they were together.  

The stress of the adoption and infertility, coupled with financial strain took a toll on their marriage. 

They decided to separate, and try living apart for awhile.  

It was the longest six months of their lives.

 They missed each other terribly and came to the realization that they still loved each other very much and wanted to be together.  

 Having a baby wasn't in the cards for them and they were sad.  

They were sad but they realized they will be ok, just the two of them.  

On Valentine's day the  blue eyed girl and the brown eyed boy will celebrate 21 years of marriage.  

Through heartbreak and illness, tough times and bad circumstances, they made it. 

Together.  

They don't have much, but they have each other.  

And they lived happily ever after.  

Sometimes Love really is all you need.  

The end.