You Are My Sunshine

Twenty-five years ago today, I stood across from the most brilliant, powerful, hilarious, and wildly beautiful woman I had ever met—and I still can’t believe she said yes.

She was stunning then. She is stunning now.

But what stuns me most is how my love for her keeps growing.

I’ve called her Sunshine for years—not just as a cute nickname, but because she is sunshine. She brings light, warmth, and brightness into every room she walks into, and into every dark moment I’ve ever had. When doubt, frustration, or discouragement have tried to pull me under, she’s pulled me out—again and again—with her joy, her stubborn hope, and her ridiculous, disarming sense of humor.

Melanie makes me laugh more than anyone else on the planet.

And if you know me, you’ve probably heard me say it before:

There are so many things I love about her—but it’s her stupidity I love the most.

Not ignorance. Not foolishness. I mean the way she throws her whole self into the moment without fear of looking ridiculous. The way she pranks me, tackles me, tickles me, or does a stupid dance right in front of me when I’m too angry or serious for my own good. She does the same thing with our boys—and it melts me every time. It’s one of the ways she’s saved me, softened me, and helped me not take myself—or life—so seriously.

Marriage, like life, is full of twists. We’ve had high seasons and hard seasons.

But even the hard parts have forged something rare and resilient between us—something no book, sermon, or romantic movie can fully prepare you for.

We’ve laughed until we couldn’t breathe. We’ve cried through loss and disappointment. We’ve taken risks, moved across the country (and back), started businesses, changed careers, and explored the world together. We’ve raised three sons, built dreams, deconstructed and reconstructed parts of our faith, our purpose, and our personalities—together.

And through it all, one thing has never changed:

She still takes my breath away.

Melanie, you are the greatest adventure of my life.

You challenge me, cheer me on, and call me out. You see me clearly and love me anyway. You walk into a room and shift the energy. You are the smartest person I know. The funniest. The most generous. And yes, the sexiest. (Still. Always.)

I don’t just love you—I’m wildly in love with you.

And I’m still learning from you—about strength, softness, leadership, resilience, humor, and grace. You are my favorite human, my best friend, and the absolute best thing that ever happened to me.

If this is what 25 years looks like, I can’t wait to see what 50 feels like.

To anyone reading this:

If you’re still early in your love story, keep showing up. Keep learning. Keep laughing. Keep choosing each other. Because there’s a kind of love that grows deeper, richer, and more real with time—and it’s worth every bit of the effort to get there.

Happy anniversary, Sunshine.

You’re still the one.

#MarriageMatters #LoveThatLasts #StrongerTogether #IntentionalMarriage #LeadWithLove #TransformationalLeadership #PeopleOverProcess #HealthyCommunication #CommunicationMatters #WordsBuildWorlds

🎧Listen to the podcast: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0ucPbubEleKcVd1UIO1bl3?si=bR5Q0AxxTJeUMOiur37xTg