I'm so excited to introduce you to my boyfriend (Note: Now he's my husband!) Carl.Β He's wonderful and wise and I'm proud to have you know him.Β So I'll let him introduce himself… by telling you the story of how we met. π
Without further ado, here's Carl!
Glancing down at my phone just long enough to check the time, I quickly turned my focus back to my footing. The obstacle course of rocks, roots, and puddles lining the dirt path that cut through the woods ahead of me commanded more attention than I wanted to give.
Two more minutes.
I could still make it, but I quickened my pace anywayβjust to be sure.
As the woods thinned, I lifted my eyes and caught the top of the pavilionβs steepled roof. I emerged from the protection of the trees just in time to be fully in sight before I stumbled clumsily over an errant, and particularly gnarly branch. I managed a half-jog recovery that wasnβt fooling anyone and quickly surveyed the scene, playing it cool.
No one saw.
My two minutes were up, so I kept jogging. I rounded the back of the pavilion and quietly found a seat on a picnic table just outsideβclose enough to hear, and maybe catch the corner of an eye as she scanned the tops of her audienceβs heads.
Then, over the next twenty minutes, I fell in love.
I did my best to listen intently, but keeping myself seated and my jaw off the floor was requiring more concentration than anticipated. On the outside, to the best of my knowledge, I was doing a pretty good job of hiding what internally felt like a parade of goofiness, anxiety, and giddiness. She was captivating. And it wasnβt anything about the way she looked.
Donβt get me wrong. Sheβs absolutely gorgeous. But that was all icing.
As I sat and listened to her pour out the depths of her heart to a group of eager twenty-somethings, all I could hear was passion. She spoke with the conviction and candor of someone who hadnβt just discovered who she wanted to be, but was living it out. It was the most unexpected, refreshing, and wholesome beauty I could have imagined.
As she finished speaking, I found myself clapping in chorus with the rest of the audience.
I wasnβt the only one impressed.
She made her way over to the edge of the pavilion and before I knew it, I was standing next to her as a handful of girls from the audience quickly surrounded her. I sat in silence and listened as one after another they told her how much her blog had meant to themβhow something about the way she told stories, her own in particular, had changed the way they saw themselves.
They thanked her for her raw honesty, her transparent permission to dream, and the unapologetic joy she finds in the fleeting sparks of beauty in the world. Taking it all in, I thought to myself, βIf she can make such a profound difference in the lives of complete strangers, I want to be around her all the time.β
And since that day, I pretty much have been.
Stephanie May is a beautiful storyteller, a selfless believer in people, and a regular contributor to this blog. But itβs not any of those things that initially attracted me to her. It was her passionate pursuit of life. She had a fire in her that I wanted to be close to.
Just like me, she was on a journey to an ambitious future full of questions, dangers, and what-ifs. But that day, sitting there in the woods listening to her describe the absolute joy she was taking in the journey.
I knew that wherever we were going, I wanted to go there together.
Being single in your twenties (and beyond) can become one of the most deeply sensitive and thought-consuming sources of insecurity weβll ever face. We constantly field questions from ourselves and others (thanks, Mom) about where weβre going, why weβre alone, and what was so wrong, again, with that last relationship?
We reconsider our compatibility, self worth, and faith in Godβor at least the opposite sex.
On our best days, we convince ourselves that the man or woman of our dreams is right around the corner as we snuggle into the couch with a tall glass of wine and our old reliable standby, Hulu.
Other days we find ourselves bouncing back and forth between the latest articles (like this one) about pursuit, dating, and how to find βMr.ββ or βMrs. Right,β becoming more and more convinced that men donβt understand pursuit, girls are too complacent β
And all the good ones are taken.
So if Hulu and wine arenβt doing the trick, what is life before βthe oneβ supposed to look like?
How do we find that person?
And what do we do in the meantime?
Itβs easy to feel lost amidst the mixed messages of culture, media, friends, family, and our own voices. We all want to be wanted, but when you want something so badly, what do you do before you have it?
Do you sit and wait, hoping that somebody will find you? Do you chase love, pursuing it wherever you think it might be hiding? Or do you pursue fulfillment that isnβt contingent on your relationship status?
Neither Stephanie nor I were looking for a relationship that day in the woods. We werenβt pursuing each other. But we were both pursuing life, our passions, and the Lord, and on that morning, our pursuits intersected. Since then, weβve continued pursuing these things as well as each other.
Now we get the best of both worlds.
My pursuit of Stephanie is made better because of my pursuit of the Lord, and my pursuit of the Lord is more abundant because I get to share it with her.
Itβs not always perfect. Healthy pursuit of a relationship is difficult, to say the least. Itβs full of ambiguity and factors outside of our control. But it becomes exponentially harder when weβre standing still. Donβt wait for life to come to you in the form of a relationshipβit already has.
Godβs journey for you doesnβt start with marriage, but you just might find it along the way.
Are you pursuing love? Something else? What are you finding along the way?
By day, Carl WilsonΒ designs meaningful experiences for brands, the web, products, processes, spaces, and graphicsΒ all through his company Anthem Workshop. By night, you can find him hanging out withΒ his wife Stephanie, exploring their new city β Nashville, TN β andΒ makingΒ really great food. You can find him on Twitter, and onΒ Instagram (where he primarily takes photos of great food and interesting bugs. You have been warned!)
I’m super glad that I was there to photo stalk the whole thing.
Love you both π
Me too!!
This is absolutely beautiful, such love of Jesus between the two of you. Thank you for sharing your story!
Thank you Margaret! π
I love that all of his compliments center on your shining INNER beauty- your passion and “joy in the journey”. Thanks for sharing this with us!
It’s my pleasure. π
Love this and y’all:)
Hi, Stephanie! I was really encouraged by this. I’m 29 and have been praying for *years* for my future husband β I feel the Lord has really put it on my heart to pray for a man who can be my best friend and creative partner. Lately, I’ve really felt the Lord remind me to keep being who He made me to be and doing what He created me to do and that He will take care of the rest. This week, I’ve been feeling a little discouraged in the waiting, though, and your story was a sweet encouragement to me. So glad to have found your blog this week! I have to catch up on some of your older posts, as well! π
I am so glad you wrote this. Thank you so much for sharing your story with me and for encouraging me in the process. God is so good and I’m blessed every single day to have both of those things β a best friend and a creative partner. I really pray that God will give you the same. And I pray for a full, abundant life in the meantime. Thank you again for sharing this. I am so blessed by your vulnerability!
Aw, thanks so much, Stephanie! I really appreciate your sweet, encouraging response. It’s such a blessing to be able to connect and share our stories. What a great way God uses us to encourage each other and spur each other on. I am actually working on a post right now about why I’m praying for a creative partner. I’m not sure how it will turn out/if I’ll actually publish it, but it’s on my heart, so we’ll see where it goes. π
Aww I love that! You should send it to me once it’s finished! π
I want reading and I believe this website got some really useful stuff on it!
Wow, what a beautiful written account of how you both first met… π Best wishes to the both of you in your relationship!
This was very encouraging and helpful to read. Thank you for sharing so much of your life with others!