Caution: If you are the children of Michelle and Don knight, reading this blog will cause you gastrointestinal difficulty and acute embarrassment
Today is the 25th anniversary of the day that I looked into my wife's eyes and heard her say " I do". But what exactly has she done?
She gave birth to my mini-me, a curly blonde headed, chubby cheeked son. Her very first words to our baby boy who had spent far too long a time in the birth canal, his cone head a testament to his prolonged arrival? " You're not very cute, but I love you!"...Those words were just a foreshadowing of who she would be over the next 20 years as a mother, wife and friend; honest, accepting and always loving...
What has she done?..When she felt that we needed to find a church, she went without me and found a church home. When my job kept me away on Sundays, she prayed that God would provide a way to bring me back to church...And He did....When I decided to move from a great job working for the state to a ministry opportunity for one third of the money, she scoured the ads and worked the phones, finding us the perfect rental which we could afford. During those lean years, she stuck with me, inviting kids into our home and loving them as much as I did. While working full-time, she hauled our son to ballgames in a baby carrier slung to her back and pushed him in a stroller to church events. When our daughter was born, and I couldn't bear to be in the Dr.s office when my children had to get their shots, she held them because that's what moms do.
What has she done?..She stuck with me when I left my job and returned to the State. She quit her job to be with our children full-time, taking them to dentist appointments, play dates, tumbling classes. When our youngest son was born, sickly and needy, and our world was rocked, she changed his colostomy, did the research and ordered the cream to bring relief to his chafed skin. During the year he had his colostomy, she performed the necessary daily steps to ensure his little body would be prepared for the the surgery to correct his issue, an invasive procedure that I avoided but she did not, because that's just what moms do...
What has she done?...When I lost my job, a victim of budget cuts, she pushed me to go back to school to get my degree. As I went to classes during the day and worked all evening, she took care of our children and ran the household. After I went to interview after interview, eventually giving up and becoming depressed, she searched the internet and put my resume on multiple job sites. I can still remember taking a call at home and hearing the voice ask me if I were still interested in a job at Target. I repeated the question out loud, confused, when she rushed into the kitchen and told me "YES...YOU ARE!!"..I worked the next seven years at a job which provided for my family and taught me numerous invaluable lessons...A job that I never even knew I had applied for...
What has she done?...She has worked every angle to make ends meet over the past 25 years. She has attended nearly every single sporting event and school activity which our children were involved in, often the only parent in the stands, yelling loudly for every child, not just her own. She has created a growing business while coaching multiple sports to ensure that kids in our community feel valued and loved. She took a job in the counseling office at the high school and has made sure that there is always chocolate available for any person, staff or student, who needed just a little reminder that they were appreciated.
What has she done?...She has held me accountable when I was wrong, encouraged me when I was broken, forgiven me when I was hurtful and kept our house filled with laughter. She has been a steadfast friend and loving mother.
What has she done?..While I have aged and become more tired and haggard looking, she has become more beautiful with every passing year. She is the person I wish my kids to be...And a model for me to point to for children who, sadly. lack such an example within their own home...
Happy anniversary Michelle, I love you
A wife of noble character who can find?
She is worth far more than rubies.
Her husband has full confidence in her
and lacks nothing of value.
She brings him good, not harm,
all the days of her life.
-Proverbs 31:10-12
