My Vows

I don't even know where to begin. I’ve always been a loner of sorts and it was always difficult for me to have deep relationships with other people. But it was so different with you. We just clicked. I still remember the yellow dress you wore when I first met you, with your short hair just like now, contemplating whether you should give me pasalubong that you brought back from your vacation, but we just met. I still remember your first text, asking me to buy extra rice for you on a random lunch time at work. I still remember our first kiss while on our way to the office. I still remember our first out of town trip alone - in Zambales, enjoying the beach. And even now, after 11 years, I’m still experiencing firsts with you. Life just seems so much more colorful with you. 

A friend once asked me, how do I know its love that I feel. I wasn't really sure how to answer it - it was a very personal question that I'm usually uncomfortable answering - you know how much I dread talking about myself. But when I thought of you, I felt comfort. I felt safe. I felt home. You have always been where I never needed a mask. You have always been where I could relax and be myself. And You have always been where I felt safe and free. You were home, at a time I didn't think I had any. 

Youve always asked me why I love you. And I always start by saying I just do. And I go on to recall all the little things that make you special. First, I’ll tell you how your eyes seduced me. I’ve always loved your eyes. Then I'll tell you that i crush your voice and enjoyed listening to you talk on the phone back then. I’ll go on to say how I loved our conversations - the real ones that talk about life, love, ideas, and dreams. And then I’ll tell you how there is no one else in the world that sees me the way you do and how there is no one else in the world I could imagine being with. You are my best friend. You are my lover. You are my pillar. You are my light. And now you are my wife. You are all these things and more. 

And as we end today, these I vow to you. That I will love you until we pass, that I will always be here, that I won't be the first to leave and you will never be alone, that you can count on me - through thick and thin, that we will face life’s challenges with hands held tight - and look back to today as our story’s new beginning, and not its climax. There are so many more firsts to share with you and I look forward to every single one of them. 

I love you Hun. On our good days, on our great days, and especially on our bad days. I loved you then, I love you now, and I will love you tomorrow and for the rest of our lives. Always.