The Wife of a Traveling Salesman...

 When I am asked what it is that my husband does for a living, I usually answer by saying that he sells something that has to do with lights...or lightbulbs....or lighting?? And honestly, I haven't bothered really trying to figure it out because it seems like when I do, he is offered a position somewhere else and then I have to learn a job description all over again. So let's just say that he sells lighting stuff and will continue to do so in some form or fashion.

 A co-worker of his came for dinner over the weekend and I got to see a different side of my husband. Sometimes I forget that he has a life outside of the walls of our house. For the most part, he knows who I know and he sees where and how I work. Sometimes I have a hard time seeing him as someone who is more than that silly 16 year old boy I've grown up with. It was at that dinner that I realized just how much weight is on his shoulders and just how much he juggles and has for the last 6+ years of our marriage. He's the picture of climbing a ladder to get to a place where he can support his little family and allow me to do what I love to do since the day we said "I do."

 As I write this, my husband is on his way home from one of his frequent business trips. The weeks that he is away on business are long. Verrrry long. And often times I get irritated or bummed when I find out that he has to go away again. However, these weeks usually serve as lessons in contentment in my life. The Lord teaches me this lesson a lot. Maybe because I never quite "get it!" The lesson usually consists of a chapter on patience, a chapter on God's grace with a lengthy final exam on thankfulness and trusting God. I usually fail the test, which is why I am taught the lesson time and time again. 

 When I think about the early years of marriage, I can see just how far we have come. We didn't have cable and we couldn't go out to eat,we rented a movie for a buck instead of going to the theaters, I had to decline shower invites because I couldn't afford a gift...BUT the Lord's blessings were always on us because He ALWAYS provided. We always had food, we always made rent, had cars that ran, tithed and had jobs. We were also blessed with the generosity of family who let me tag along on trips to Disney or taking us on trips to the beach. And I will FOREVER remember the kind man who saw a young married girl trying to buy something to make for a valentines dinner and paid for my groceries when I didn't have enough cash to pay for it. And then there was my husband, who knew I loved my job (which paid diddly squat) and never forced me to find something that paid more. A husband who delivered light bulbs during the week, worked at a gym in the evening and washed cars on the weekend so that I could do what I love.

While we were broke as a joke, I wouldn't change those early days for anything. It taught me about hard work and sacrifice, what going without is all about, all so I could do life with my friend. I would...and could do it all over again if I had to. 

 Six and a half years later and my husband is still busting it for me....for us. I will forever be thankful to my husband for all of his hard work so I can stay home with our babies. Life has gotten a little more comfortable over the years but I know it could all go away in a blink too. And that's ok, but I never in a million years would have guessed that a lightbulb delivery driver would have found so many open doors in the lightbulb world, but he has and the Lord has been sooo good to us. I hope that this post serves as a "cheat sheet" for ME when I find myself in the middle of one of my contentment lessons again.